School Never Ends
by PrincessT123
Summary: Adopted from Tentendestiny. Isn't that what makes girls feel so special? When their boyfriend rakes them over like a piece of eye candy? I wouldn't know. I'm not experienced with boys. Boys, school, kids and hopefully an A plus at the end of "vacation".
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One

_Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto does_

**Hey guys! So, I'm just cleaning up these first couple of chapters and then will post the next chapter in a couple of days or sooner. Sorry, really busy . Anyways, I hope TentenDestiny is reading this and likes what I'm doing to her story. Any suggestions are welcome and comment ^.^**

My lips parted into an "o" shape as I stood on the cobblestone steps of my new school. The wind blew my russet locks that tumbled over my shoulders and down to my waist into my face and I lifted a hand to my face to clear my vision.

"Damn," I muttered, "This school is huge!" I thought most schools were supposed to be small because the board of education is so damn cheap but Kami was I wrong. I took a breath and lifted my hand to the door handle, pulling it open and walking inside as a wave of air conditioner hit me.

_Now, where's the main office?_ I thought, glancing around the roomy halls. Before I knew it, my feet were taking me down a new hall and I had just realized I was nowhere near the office when I bumped into someone.

"Hey," I said, "Watch where you're going-"

I was interrupted by repeated apologies. My eyes lifted to meet the apologetic idiot when I came face to face with a pair of emerald eyes, so bright they reminded me of a cat's. "Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry," said the pinkette, "Are you alright?"

"Um, yeah, I'm fine." I said, waving my hands with a sheepish look plastered on my face. "Could you help me find the office?"

"Yeah, sure," she said preppy-like, "Are you new?" _No shit, Sherlock, I'm wandering around the school aimlessly_. I thought with a roll of my eyes.

"Yeah," I responded, flashing her a sketchy smile.

"Okay, just follow me then." She said as she began to walk in the opposite direction I had come from. _Figures._

"So," I said, trying to start a conversation, "What's your name?"

"Sakura Haruno," she said, "What's yours?"

"Tenten Kiyomizu," I responded, wringing my hands as we reached the office. Sakura stopped in front of the huge oak door and flashed me a toothy smile.

"Thanks," I said, pushing the door open with one hand and walking in.

"Would you like me to wait for you? I could show you to your room." She suggested. I stopped, a blush dusting my cheeks from my churlish behavior.

"Yeah, thanks." I said, holding the door open for her to follow. When we reached the front desk, we were met by a woman with choppy, black hair.

"Hello," she greeted, twisting her head to the side and smiling, "You must be Tenten, our new student?" I nodded. "My name is Shizune, Principal Tsunade's secretary. She's ready to see you now."

"Thank you," I called over my shoulder as I entered another set of doors. My stomach churned uneasily as I stood before my new principle. She looked young, maybe in her mid thirties, and had platinum blonde hair that was pulled back into two pigtails. She was a busty woman with amber eyes and rosebud lips.

"So," she said, lacing her hands together and resting her chin on top of them, "You must be Tenten, am I correct?" I nodded. "Take a seat." I wiped the sweat off of my palms and took a seat in one of her purple lounge chairs.

"Alright, well, I am your principle and here is your schedule and room number." She said, handing me two sheets of paper. I nodded eagerly, a small smile gracing my lips as I looked them over. I wondered why I was so happy about this. I mean, I had to leave my old school with all of my friends because of _her._

Then, she dismissed me and I exited her office, meeting up with Sakura and following her down a hall. 'What if I don't like my roommates?' I thought, biting my lower lip nervously.

Sakura stopped suddenly and twisted around, grabbing my schedule eagerly and smiling. "Look," she said, her eyes glimmering, "We have the same schedule!" I perked u at this.

"Yeah," I said just as eagerly, "Now I'll have at least one friend here." Sakura pulled me in for a life taking hug and squeezed me tightly.

"So," she said, releasing me and looking down at my papers, "You share a room with Neji and Sasuke!"

"Sasuke goes to this school too?" I asked, completely astonished. "It's been so long since I've seen him."

"You know Sasuke?" Sakura said, voice low. I nodded.

"Yeah, he's my cousin."

"Holy fuck! He's your cousin?" she asked, eyes wide. "You'd better not let those fan girls of his know that or they'll rip you to shreds."

"Yeah," I said with a nod, "I wish they would so I could beat the shit out of them before they screamed mercy." Sakura smiled a draped an arm around my shoulders.

"Okay," she said, starting to walk again and dragging me along with her, "But because you are my friend, I will tell you that you have got to be careful about the Neji and Sasuke fan clubs." I nodded with an amused smile. _Who's Neji?_

XXXXXXXXXXX

"Alright, well, here's your room." The bubblegum haired teen said, releasing me from her grip. "I can walk you to class tomorrow and introduce you to my friends if you'd like."

"Yeah, that would be great," I said with a small smile, "Thanks."

"Well, see ya'," she said over her shoulder as she pranced away. I let out a sigh and opened the door to my new room. But when I stepped inside, I was met by my cousin, Sasuke, sitting on the couch, idly watching television.

I glanced over to the other guy which I assumed was Neji. He was doing quite the opposite. Reading a book.

"Hey, Sasuke," I said, slamming the door behind me to grab their attention, "What's cracking?" Sasuke stumbled off of the couch, landing on his rump, as Neji's milky orbs lifted to meet mine.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Sasuke shouted, completely baffled.

"What do you mean 'why are you here'? It's a free country and I can go pretty much anywhere I want to go!" I shouted back, an amused smile plastered on my lips.

"Uchiha," Neji said stoically, "Please don't tell me this is one of your past girlfriends."

"Aw," I said mockingly, "My little Sasu-chan is growing up."

"Tenten," he growled, "I told you to never call me that!" I shrugged.

"What," I poured, crossing my arms cutely, "I'm not allowed to call my favorite cousin that?"

"I'm warning you," he hissed between clenched teeth. I arched my brow and then smirked.

"Sa-su-chan." I said, dragging it out and leaning my head toward him with an amused smile.

His lips twisted into a daunting smile and he lunged, pinning me to the ground in triumph.

"Sasuke," I groaned, "You're heavy!" Sasuke gave me a nonchalant look and smirked. "Get off!" I shouted into his face.

"Not until you say mercy." He said stubbornly.

"Never," I shouted sternly. Sasuke's smirk widened as he began to cough up spit. I grimaced and turned my face away as his spit started to drip down in a thin line.

"Mercy, mercy," I shouted, nearly crying. Sasuke sucked his spit back up and rose to his feet.

"Yup, that's what I thought." He retorted, arms crossed.

"So," I said, "How's aunty?" Sasuke shrugged.

"Fine, so is dad, and Itachi's still a stubborn bastard, like usual."

"You're just mad because Itachi and I would gang up on you after you and Naruto would tease me and call me names." I said as I stuck out my tongue.

"Oh yeah," he said, smirk forming, "What was that name again?"

"Sasuke I'm warning you!"

"Oh yeah now I remember!"

"Sasuke, don't say it!"

"Ok, Ok I'm sorry… Panda-chan" I growled, about to lunge for him when there was a knock at the door. Neji rose to his feet and opened the door to find a loud mouthed, hyperactive, blonde teen, also known as…

"Hey, Naruto, what are you doing here?" Neji asked with an annoyed look on his face. Wow I never pictured him to have emotions like that. Hey you learn something new every day!

"I just came to figure out what was with all the yelling I could hear all the way from down the hall." He stopped, staring at me emotionlessly.

"Wow, teme, I would have never thought you would kinky with a random girl!" teased Naruto.

"Naruto, I haven't seen you in a while!" I shouted as I ran up and hugged him.

"Naruto you remember Tenten, my cousin." Sasuke said while leaning against the wall coolly.

"Panda-chan, I haven't seen you in years!" he said as he hugged me back.

"Oh great, now he's done It." mumbled Sasuke. I pulled away and stared at Naruto. Then my eye twitched, and then in a blink of an eye I punched Naruto hard in the face as he flew into the wall of our dorm room.

"Naruto!" I shouted as I neared him and started to ring his neck until he gasped for air. That's when Sasuke walked over and pried my hands away from his neck.

"Oh yeah, now I remember, Tenten always hated being called that. That's when she would go get Itachi and we started running for our lives." Naruto mumbled in between breaths. I stuck my tongue out at him.

Then, I walked over to Neji who was smirking and chuckling. "And what is so funny, may I ask?" I said, brow arched.

"Oh, nothing, nothing at all." He said as his smirk grew (if that was even possible.)

"Uh-huh," I said, nodding, "I thought so."

"So, Tenten, why are you here?" asked Naruto.

"What the hell? Why is everybody asking why I'm here? It's a free country and I can go anywhere I want." I shouted angrily.

"What do you take me for? An idiot? I know you, Tenten, and you wouldn't leave your friends and old house just to be here." Sasuke said as he pushed the issue instead of dropping it.

"Alright, it was because Mae and Honoka, but mostly Mae because she heard from Uncle Fugaku that you went here. So of course, the wicked witch of the west, also named Freda, made all three of us go here."

"She's _still_ obsessed with me? Oh Kami, what am I supposed to do?" Sasuke panicked.

"Wait," asked Neji, sounding a bit frantic, "Is that the same one that used to stalk me when we were little?"

"Yup," I nodded.

"Um… Sasuke there is someone walking down the hall and it looks like they are going to stop at the door." Said Naruto as he opened the door, totally oblivious to what we were just talking about. I told Neji to hide in the closet and Sasuke to hide underneath the bed.

"Hey guys, what's up? I just wanted to talk to Tenten."

"Sakura, what the hell are you doing here?" Neji and Sasuke asked in unison.

"Well, like I said, I just wanted to talk to Tenten so I could introduce her to my friends. Hinata, Ino, Temari; come in!"

Then, in walked a girl with long, midnight blue hair with bangs that framed her face perfectly. Her eyes were a milky lavender that matched Neji's and she had a pallid complection. Then, another girl walked in with her platinum blonde hair in a high ponytail and shimmering blue eyes that almost matched Naruto's, but not quite.

And then, another girl with sandy blonde hair stepped in. her hair was pulled up into four pigtails and she had topaz colored eyes.

"What are you three doing here?" Neji inquired.

"Oh, we're just here to introduce ourselves." The platinum blond said. Then, she turned to face me. "Hi, my name is Ino Yamanaka."

"My name's Temari Sabaku." said the sandy blonde.

"And I'm Hinata Hyuga." said the last girl with the porcelain face.

"Um…. I have a question." I stated. Everyone turned to look at me, and that made me feel so uncomfortable on so many levels.

"Yes, Tenten, what is it?" asked Ino.

"Are Neji and Hinata related?" I asked. A couple seconds later everyone busted out laughing. Well, except for Neji and Sasuke, they just smirked because they were too good to laugh. They are such stoic bastards. Unless Sasuke gets mad at me and starts tackling me.

"What? What's so funny? That was a very reasonable question that I asked." I started to get annoyed with this. 10 minutes later everyone started to calm down.

"Ok, ok, _yes, _Hinata and Neji are cousins." Sakura said between laughs. Hours passed by and Naruto brought the guys over. So, I met a guy named Shikamaru Nara, the laziest man on earth.

Next was guy named Kiba. He had red triangles on his cheeks and carried a small dog named Akamaru.

"Alright, I think we should all go to sleep, we have school tomorrow morning." Neji said as he yawned. So, we all yawned because yawns are contagious. I punched him in the shoulder and he fell over.

"What the hell?" he shouted.

"What? You yawned and then you made me yawn!" I said innocently. We started glaring at each other intensely and steam started to come out of both of his ears and his face turned red.

"Well… Bye!" they all said in unison and left to their dorms. We kept glaring until I blinked. That was when it was all over.

"Hah, you lose!" Neji shouted and walked over to his bed. (Wow that was very OOC of Neji!)

"I'm going to take a shower." I said and walked to the bathroom as they both nodded. When I came out of the shower, I was dressed in a tight black tank top and pink short shorts. I looked like a total slut but it was really hot and I didn't want to wear pants or else I would get hot flashes. Neji was shirtless with pajama pants on. Sasuke had a gray tank top and boxers on. I looked at Neji and saw his beautiful six pack abs and nicely chiseled chest. But the bad thing was that I was caught in the action.

"Like what you see?" Neji teased.

"Hmph" I said and went to bed. I had no idea what the next morning had in store for me.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

_Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto does_

**Hey guys, I'm trying to get all of these chapters retyped and finished today so you can read the newest chapter written by yours truly. But, the thing is I have a science and social studies project to work on today and, yes, I have food poisoning again because of the famous "eat more chicken" restaurant. Plus, we're redoing the floors and my dad moved my desk to the kitchen and the internet isn't working so you're probably reading this around three in the afternoon or so. Okay, let's start.**

I heard an alarm clock go off. I crawled out of my bed idly, stumbling toward the menace and shutting it off. I was___so___not in the mood to hear anything try and wake me up at fucking five in the morning. I lifted my hand to my mouth, stifling a yawn as I crawled back into bed and pulled the covers up to my chin.

Just when I was about to doze off into my happy-dream-land, there was pounding at the door. I didn't move an inch, deciding to just let one of the guys get it, because if I got up, the person on the other side of the door was going to get mouthfuls of hell going down their throat. With a burning sensation that they will feel when it hits the back of their throat.

'**Eww now you know that sounds wrong. Like really wrong Tennie-chan**'

'_I really don't-I'm too tired! And I thought I told you not to call me 'Tennie-chan'_

'**Hey wake up! Someone is answering the door!**'

I stayed still but kept my ears open.

"What the hell are you doing here? It's five in the morning!" exclaimed the deep voice that I couldn't really describe because of my drowsiness.

"Oh, well, I was going to help Tenten get ready for school!" said an over peppy voice that kind of sounded like Ino almost, but it wasn't.

"What the _hell,_ Sakura, you woke me up at five in the _fucking_ morning because you wanted to help my cousin get ready for school?" shouted the deep voiced teen.

'_Oh, so Sakura is the one at the door!_'

Almost instantly, Sakura shrunk back in fear and intimidation before hesitantly answering, "Um, yes?"

"Then go get her. She still doesn't have her uniform and I have to meet the dobe early in the morning so I won't have time, and I doubt Neji will have time, so go right ahead." Sasuke stated in a very calm voice.

"Thanks, Sasuke."

I could hear Sakura's feet padding toward my bed and I tensed. Then, I felt her cool hands on my shoulders, shaking me gently. I blinked a few times and then sat up in my bed, watching her with a puzzled expression. After all, I did have to act like I didn't hear a thing.

"Mm what do you want Sakura?" I asked, trying to sound as drowsy as possible.

"Just come with me, _please_." Sakura begged.

"Eww, Sakura, now you know that sounds wrong." I said, fully awake now.

"Tenten, get your mind out the gutter and get out of bed!" she shouted. Next thing I knew, I was holding my tooth brush in my right hand and we are walking to the main office where Sakura and I kind of met.

She explained to me that she was taking me to the main office to get my school uniform and then I was going to change at her dorm which she shares with Hinata and Temari.

"Where's Ino?" I asked.

"Oh, she stays in a dorm with a girl named Karin and one of Karin's friends named Ami." Sakura informed me.

"Oh, well, who are Karin and Ami?" I asked out of curiosity.

"Oh, you'll find out soon enough." she said with a sigh.

'I'm going to have to protect her from Karin since she's new and Karin will prey on her like a new pair of boots that just came into season,' Sakura thought.

XXXXXXXXXXX

We had just finished walking around the school, Sakura giving me the grand tour by opening doors and showing me where she sat. We still had thirty minutes before first period started, so we headed over to Kakashi Sensei's room to hand out with Hinata, Ino and Temari.

"Hey guys," Sakura greeted as she opened the door and strode in. I followed after her, flashing the group of girls a shy smile and waving tentatively. Hinata smiled back and beckoned me forth patting the seat beside her as Sakura took a seat beside Temari.

We all started chatting about incoherent things like clothes, video games and, no surprise, Sasuke, when all of a sudden, Ino burst out laughing. We all stared at her, dumbfounded, as she wiped the tears from her eyes.

"Um, Ino, are you on medication that you somehow didn't take this morning?" I asked with a bit of curiosity behind my voice, but mostly fear.

"Oh, don't be silly Tenten; Ino isn't that insane to take prescription medication. But we still aren't sure about non- prescribed drugs." Temari said with an amused smirk.

"Oh shut up. At least I don't like a lazy-ass bastard that can't even stay up for an hour!" Ino exclaimed with a triumphant smirk plastered onto her face. Temari went silent as a rosy blush dusted her cheeks.

"Ohhhhh, burn!" I said with a small giggle as all of the other girls laughed right along with me.

"SHUT UP TENTEN, no one asked you a damn thing!" screamed Temari.

"Awww, you don't have to get your panties in a bunch. I was only kidding!" I said through pants as I tried to calm down from laughing so hard.

"Thank you for you kind words, Captain Obvious!" Ino said with a snicker.

"You're welcome, Lieutenant Sarcasm!" I counter attacked. A silent moment came upon us.

"Yeah," I said, crossing my arms victoriously, "That's what I thought."

After a moment of smart remarks and a couple of stupid arguments, students started to file into the room, chatting with their classmates. Kiba and Naruto were quarreling about something, Sasuke standing between them, his brow twitching and before they knew what was coming, Kiba and Naruto were on the floor, rubbing their heads simultaneously.

I smirked, a few giggles escaping my lips and turned my head when I heard a low chuckle beside me. I turned my head to see Neji seated beside me. My amber eyes locked with his milky ones and before I knew it, I was drowning in them. I blinked and turned away, my face reddening.

Neji snorted, crossing his arms and smirking quietly to himself. Then, all of a sudden, I heard a gasp and turned to see _her___of all people. With her long, brown hair with tight curls that fell to her shoulders and bangs that framed her face so perfectly. Her name was Mae and she was one of my step sisters.

I despise her, and she despises me. We're such a happy family. Note the sarcasm. She's a couple of months older than me and thinks she's Miss Perfect.

Next to her is my other step sister that I love so much. Her name is Honoka and she has straight, dark brown hair that goes past her butt. I love her and she loves me. Note there is no sarcasm. She's only a couple of months younger than me and treats me like a birth sister.

In front of them was a girl with red hair that went to her shoulders. She was wearing black rimmed glasses and showed a lot of skin and cleavage with her uniform. Slut. She looked like the ring leader.

There was another girl there, but I didn't really care about her. My focus was on Mae. She looked angry,___Very _angry. She stomped over to me, took a pencil from a random kid and stabbed it right next to my hand, only a couple of centimeters away from it. The whole classroom went silent.

"What the hell, Mae? What's your problem?" I asked, anger flashing through my eyes.

"My problem is that you are sitting next to _my_ Neji-kun!" Mae shouted right in my face.

I stood up so we were eye level and said calmly, a hint of bitter-sweetness in my voice, "Well, that sounds like a personal problem." Her eyes narrowed and we glared at each other for what felt like hours. Then, she did the unthinkable.

She slapped me.

**Well, never thought I'd finish that. What with all of this homework and shit. So, hope you liked it and comment! **


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

_Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto does_

**Hey guys! So, I'm eating my lunch right now while typing this and I think I might puke. You see, I had this package of ramen but I didn't like the flavor, so I threw the flavor packet away and took out some tomato paste to use for tomato sauce. Who knew they weren't the same thing? Lol, then I sautéed spinach and onions with garlic. The veggies taste good… **

She slapped me. What the hell did she think she was doing?

Mae lifted her hand that was balled into a fist and steered it toward my face. I closed my eyes and waited for the impacted. It never came. I opened my eyes to see Honoka holding her wrist two inches before my face.

"You can't hit one-chan! I won't allow it!" she screamed. I felt my heart leap when she said that. She really cared for me that much!

"Shut up, Honoka, this has nothing to do with you!" Mae screeched.

"It had everything to do with me. I'm a part of this family just as much as you two are."

"I warned you, Honoka, you should have never interfered!" right after Mae said that she slapped Honoka right across her face. The impact was so hard it flung her to the ground and she passed out.

"Oh my Kami; how could you do that?" I shouted, "She's your own sister." Everyone was looking at us with amusement, fear, and….is that a hint of lust I see? Eww!

"I told her not to interfere but she didn't listen. Oh well, she got her punishment." Mae said with a too-snotty-to-care look.

"You Bitch," I said between clenched teeth as I lunged over my desk and tackled her. I was on top. Does that said wrong to anyone else besides me? I slammed my fist into her jaw, hearing a crack and throwing another punch to her collarbone. Mae tried to defend herself by slapping me but failed miserably.

So, she pulled my hair instead. I bit my tongue as a grin etched onto her face. She'd hit my weak spot and she knew it. With that, she mustered up enough strength to flip me over so she was on the top instead and I was on the bottom, my head rocking back into the tiled floor every time her fist met my cheek.

I lifted my knee to kick her off of me when Sasuke pulled her up by the waist and threw her aside. I tried to stand up but I failed…miserably. I fell back to the ground and passed out. It was so black and lonely and, most of all, cold. It reminded me of home. And that's definitely not a good thing.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

My eyes fluttered open at the sound of muffled voices. I squinted in the white light that beamed down onto my face. The smell of antiseptic was in the air and so I figured I was in the nurse's office.

I glanced over at the end of my bed to see Sasuke sitting there, talking to someone on the opposite side of the room. I glanced over to the doorway to find Neji standing there, leaning on the wall with his arms crossed and one foot against the wall while the other was on the floor keeping him balanced.

He looked so _sexy._

**You are so right**

_What the hell are you doing here? I thought I got rid of you_

**Well I'm back now and my God he is so sexy!**

_Whatever. I need to listen now so SHUT UP and LEAVE!_

**Fine, fine I'll go; bye.**

"So, you're finally awake, huh, Tenten?" Sasuke asked

"What? How many classes did I miss?" I asked, petrified.

"You're fine; I gathered all of your homework for you." Neji said.

"Well….huh, thanks Neji, I really appreciate that." I said, trying to keep the blush that was tinting my cheeks from spreading to my neck.

"So, what happened to Mae? Did she get expelled?" I said, the last part a little too happy.

"No, bitch, I'm still here. And don't talk about me like you didn't even notice that I was right here." yelled a voice to the side of me. It was her, the wicked witch of the west, Mae. What the hell is she even doing here? Her ass deserves to be jail. And if she's here then where's Honoka? ... Did she just call me a bitch? Oh no she didn't.

"Where's Honoka?" I asked, ignoring her and trying to keep my temper down.

"She went home." Mae said with an are-you-that-stupid-look. I felt like kicking her teeth in. Then, all of a sudden, my phone went off. My ringtone was Kick in the Teeth by Papa Roach. Déjà vu.

"Hello?" I answered.

"_Tennie- chan, where are you?"_It was Honoka's voice on the other line.

"Hey, Honoka, I'm in the nurse's office. How are you? Are you feeling ok?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, I was just hoping that you were ok." She said.

"I'm fine."

"Kay, I'll see you later." She said, her voice sounding a bit worried aside from my reassurance.

"Yeah, I'll see ya' later." I responded. Then, I shut my phone with a click and slipped it back into my pocket.

"You're so lucky Honoka said she was fine, Mae." I said in a low, threatening voice. It was silent for a while. Neji and Sasuke were shocked because they never thought that I could act that way. They only knew me as the happy-go-lucky kind of girl. Then Mae started laughing hysterically. That made my blood boil.

"You're the one that fainted in the fight!" she said in between giggles.

"WHY YOU!" then I pounced. But I never reached her. Sasuke and Neji held me back before I could claw out her eyes.

"Tenten, stop, if you hurt her again you will definitely get expelled!" shouted Sasuke. I sighed and stopped struggling.

. "I'm gonna' go to my dorm room now. Bye Tennie-chan," she said in a mocking tone of voice.

"I'll kill her." I said through gritted teeth.

"Come on, Tenten, let's go back to the dorm room." Neji said once she was out of ear shot.

"Fine. Let's go." I started to walk but lost my balance. Neji held on to me and put me on his back. "Thank you…" I said just above a whisper. Then my world went black.

The Next Day

Midnight

I was sleeping peacefully. Then all of a sudden:

Stickin n

Stickin n

Stickin n rollin (x4)

Front Back

Front Back

Front Back Front Back

Stick to the front

Stick to the back

Stick to the front

Stick to the back

Stick to the front

Stick it to the back

Stick Stick Stick Sti-

"Tenten, turn that shit off!" yelled a groggy Sasuke.

"Ok, ok," I said, trying to answer the phone. I know it's on the dresser somewhere. Then I fell over Sasuke's pile of clothes.

"Sasuke, what hell? I just got attacked by your laundry!" I shouted at him.

"You both need to shut the hell up!" yelled Neji. "I'll answer the phone." He announced. He then climbed out of bed and picked up the phone, holding it to his ear and saying, "What the hell do you want? And it better be good because it's fucking twelve in the morning." He said into the phone.

"_Well, I need Tenten, Sasuke, and you, Mr. Hyuga, in Mr. Kakashi's classroom. Goodbye."_Said the voice on the other line

"Sasuke, Tenten, get dressed. We're going to Kakashi's classroom" said Neji as he put on a pair of jeans.

"WHY?" Sasuke and I whined.

"Because he wants us there, that's why." Neji stated simply.

"Fine, but I'm going just the way I am." I had on blue short shorts that read "quack-quack" on my ass and a yellow tank top with yellow duckies on it. My hair fell down to my waist in spirals and my side bangs were all oddly angled.

"Well I sure as hell am not," said Sasuke, grabbing a pair of jeans and a black tee shirt.

And then we all left.

**Yup, so, only a couple more chapters before chapter seven! I cannot wait to get to chapter seven so I can begin writing down my own ideas. Though, I have to admit, editing this is much faster than coming up with the ideas. ;) Comment **


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

_Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto does _

**Hey guys! I've been trying to do a oneshot for HinaSai because I got a request but I totally have writer's block! I don't know Sai much, so I have no idea what to do! Any ideas are greatly appreciated! **

When we finally reached the classroom, we were met by a sea of faces swarmed into a circle. Sasuke and I shared a look, Neji staying remotely emotionless, and we made our way over to the group of faces we recognized. I nodded my head in acknowledgment and glanced around.

"Where's Ino?" I inquired.

"She should be here right about," Sakura prolonged the work for quite a while until Ino finally stormed into the classroom, "Now."

"YOU ANIMAL!" a voice shouted form all the way down the hallway.

"I said I was sorry already." Ino shouted form the doorway, flailing her arms in the air.

"Ino, you bitch, you got your stupid gum in my hair!" shouted a teen in some skimpy tank top with nothing under it but underwear.

"Sorry, Karin, I was blowing a bubble and you walked into it." Ino responded idly.

"Whatever, you'd better watch your back, do hear me?" Karin shouted, now standing in the doorway with Ino.

"Yeah, yeah" Ino said with the wave of her hand.

"Ino, are you alright?" Hinata asked, rushing over to her and bumping into Karin in the process.

"Hey, watch it bitch," Karin said through gritted teeth. Hinata turned her head slowly towards Karin.

"Hey, don't talk to Hinata like that."Temari defended.

"No, I got this." Hinata said calmly. Then she turned to Karin and titled her head. "Were you talking to me?" she asked.

"Who else would I be talking to, whore?" Karin retorted while her clique snickered.

"Who the hell do you think you are?" Hinata shouted. The whole room went silent and everyone focused their attention on the normally-timid bluenette.

"I will rip you a new asshole, understand?"

Karin shrunk away, nodding furiously. Hinata raised a brow, her lip twitching into a whimsical smile. Then, she turned around and muttered, "Damn bitch gets on my fucking nerves."

"Damn," the whole room chorused simultaneously.

"What?" she asked innocently, making her way toward her group of friends.

"That's my girl," Sasuke said, draping an arm around her shoulders and giving her a soft peck on the cheek.

What the hell?" the majority once again chorused together.

Neji glanced over at me, arms crossed and brow twitching uncontrollably. "You're not surprised by this what-so-ever, Tenten?" He inquired.

"What?" I asked, "Hinata's outburst or Hinata and Sasuke being a couple?"

"Both," Neji responded.

"Not really," I said with a shrug, "Sasuke said he's been dating a girl since the beginning of junior year in all of our emails. And then when I met Hinata, she fit the description perfectly. He also described her as quiet and reserved and I figured she was bound to crack sooner or later."

"Sasuke," Neji said through gritted teeth, quietly seething, "You mean to tell me that you've been dating my cousin for three years now?"

In the back ground, a chibi Ino asks, "Neji, why is there steam coming out of your ears?"

"Yeah," Sasuke answered nonchalantly, as if to challenge him.

"I'll kill you!" He shouted, lunging toward him. It took Shikamaru, Kiba, Naruto, and I to keep him back.

"Neji," I screamed, tugging on his torso, "You can't kill my cousin." Finally, Neji calmed down and shrugged us all off of him. Right on time too.

"Hello, class, I'm sorry for the inconvenience, but I have an announcement to make that couldn't wait until tomorrow." Kakashi Sensei announced to the class as we strode into the classroom. "Now, will my assistant please enter the classroom?" Then, someone dressed in a long, black cloak walked into the classroom and we all gasped.

"Itachi!" I shouted eagerly, racing up to him and hopping into his arms.

"Hey, Tenten," he greeted with a sheepish smile, "I haven't seen you in a while. What's new?" He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me into his chest.

"Nothing much," I answered as he released me, tugging my shirt down from when it rode up my stomach.

"Well, it's nice to see my little cousin again." He said with a soft smile. I returned it and then retreated back to the group, taking my place beside Neji.

"Now, class, this you're next project. It will count as sixty five percent of your grade and it's going to be the biggest project you'll do this year. Now, if you fail, you will not become a sophomore next year."

Itachi smiled as the class groaned. "You'll be taking care of an orphan for the next five months with your partner that we will assign to you. The point of the project will be to show you how to be a parent for in the near future." Kakashi finished.

The whole class went silent. "Surprise!" Itachi shouted.

**Hey guys, I'm sorry this was so short, but that's just how long Tentendestiny decided to write it. Anyways, comment and I'll be uploading really soon. Thanks :) **


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five

_Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto does_

**Hey guys, so I'm not doing so well. I took this ibuprofen thingy and the side effect was stomach bleeding which I'm pretty sure I know have. I can't walk and I'm pouring out blood irregularly. And Rou and I were in tae kwon do and we were sparring and she lightly kicked me, but I fell back and went all paralyzed and started coughing up some blood in my mouth so… I feel like I'm actually in Naruto, that's how bad the pain is. Review please! **

The whole classroom groaned. Why does this always happen to me? I'm nice…most of the time and I'm funny, so, why does the universe just love proving me wrong?

_**You make it too easy!**_

_Oh shut up. No one asked you a damn thing!_

Itachi's eyebrow twitched at the sudden chorus of groans. "You know what?" he shouted, ceasing the loud moans, "Now you all have to take care of the child until you graduate being a freshman. How about them apples?"

The whole room went silent.

"Thank you, Itachi," Kakashi said, clearing his throat and then proceeding, "So, class, you will have to take care of these children for your freshman year. These children will be coming from the Konoha Orphanage. I will know about any harsh treatment towards these children because they will tell me how good you were to them at the end of the year when this project is done. Okay?"

"Yes, Kakashi-sensei." Everyone said in unison.

"Now, I will write the names of your partners and child on the board." Itachi said, walking to the white board and opening the cap of a black expo marker.

Sasuke-Hinata: Karou (Boy)

Naruto-Ino: Ellis (Girl)

Shikamaru-Temari: Hikaru (Boy)

Neji-Tenten: Kirimi (Girl)

Kiba-Honoka: Ken (Boy)

Choji-Mae: Miharu (Girl)

Lee-Sakura: Tamaki (Boy)

Gaara-Serenity: Asuna (Girl)

Kankuro-Karin: Negi (Boy)

And much more random people that I don't know nor care about.

"Now, in the next room you can pick up your child."Itachi stated. Then, everyone filed out of the classroom and into the next classroom across the hall.

"You're so cute!" Ino shouted, flailing her arms and pinching the cheek of a little girl. I glanced over at Ino who was crouched down beside a little girl with a rose pink blush on her cheeks. I let a wisp of air escape my lips as I glanced around the classroom. Then, I spotted a little girl standing all alone in the middle of the room.

"Okay, than you!" I said cheerfully as I pranced over toward the little tot.

"Kami, Tenten, can you be any more like a child yourself?" questioned Neji as he appeared beside her. I glanced over at him, shrinking back at the look etched onto his face. You could tell he was still pissed off about earlier with the whole Sasuke and Hinata thing and the fact that we would have to take care of a kid until we graduate.

I let out a sheepish laugh and shrugged him off with the wave of my hand. Then, I glanced down at our little bundle of joy and smiled. She was around two years old with two long, platinum pigtails and bangs that framed her face. She also had two pools of cerulean that sparkled in the light and a too-die-for outfit on.

There was a strawberry poky stick hanging out of her mouth idly and she carried a small, stuffed kitten. I let a small "Aww," under my breath as Kirimi pounced up and shouted "HIYA!"

"Dammit, she's one of those hyper children." Neji said.

"Neji-language," I scolded while slapping him upside the head. Then, I stubbed my toe on his shoe and crouched down to cradle it in my hands

"Oh, fuck, oh fuck, oh fuck, OH FUCK THAT HURT!" I chanted over and over again.

"What does fuck mean?" Kiba and Honoka's kid asked them.

"Well," Kiba started, raising his index finger, "Fuck, my dear lad, is when two people fool around which each other. Which, a.k.a, is screwing around, and then they-"

"KIBA!" we all shouted in unison. Honoka bonked him on the head.

"What?" He pouted, crossing his arms over his chest childishly, "Ken is the one that asked."

"You idiot, he's only a kid," Sasuke said nonchalantly with the shake of his head, "And all you have to say is _I'll tell you when you're older_ and they'll forget about even asking."

"Well, aren't you the father figure, Sasu-kun," Hinata purred, leaning in and planting a small kiss on his cheek. Sasuke returned that kiss tenfold.

"Okay, love bugs, break it up. Let's keep it rated PG, shall we? Plus, we don't want Neji over there blowing a gasket." I said as I craned my next so they could see Neji fuming with, sigh, a chibi Ino poking his cheek and asking once again, "Neji, why is there steam coming out of your ear?"

We all sighed and rolled our eyes as she shrugged and said, "What? It's fun!" Then, she turned to Sasuke and added, "And could you two keep it PG? We don't want you guys to end yup fucking like bunnies."

"INO!"

**Sheesh, that was short. Well, I'm tired and hungry and have too much homework that I can't believe I even edited this today. I'm so going to fail… ;( **


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter Six

_Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto does_

**Hey guys, so I've decided to upload my last edited chapter today so I can start on the new chapters tomorrow. Thank you to those who actually comment and hope you like it! **

**Karou** (Sasuke and Hinata child) Boy- Dark brown hair that reaches his shoulders in a low ponytail with bangs that frame his face. Green eyes and 2 years old.

**Ellis** (Naruto and Ino child) Girl- Blonde hair that reaches the nape of her neck with bangs that frame her face. Blue Eyes and 2 years old.

**Hikaru** (Shikamaru and Temari child) Boy- He has Red hair and brown eyes and bangs that frame his face. He is 2 years old and his hair is spiky. Picture Hikaru from Ouran High School Host Club

**Kirimi** (Neji and Tenten child) Girl- She has blonde hair that is in 2 high pigtails and blue eyes. She is 2 years old. And has bangs that frame her face.

**Ken **(Kiba and Honoka child) Boy- He has short spiky brown hair and brown eyes. He is 2 years old.

**Miharu** (Choji and Mae child) Girl- Long green hair that passes her butt and purple eyes. She is 2 years old.

**Tamaki **(Lee and Sakura child) Boy- He has blonde hair and purple eyes and is 2 years old. Please Picture Tamaki from Ouran High School Host Club.

**Asuna** (Gaara and Serenity child) Girl- She has Orange hair that is in 2 high pigtails with bells as the ponytail holder. One eye is blue and one eye is green. She is 2 years old. Please picture Asuna from the anime show Negima!

**Negi** (Kankuro and Karin child) Boy- Has maroon hair that is in a ponytail with bangs that frame his face and brown eyes. He is 2 years old. Please picture Negi from the anime show Negima!

"Ino, why on earth would you say that in front of the children?" I asked, cupping my hands over Kirimi's ears.

"Sorry, sorry, don't hurt me." She apologized while ducking behind Naruto. With all of our laughing, we didn't even notice Itachi make his way to the front of the room with a microphone. Don't ask me how he got it.

"Ok, now we have another surprise for all of you." He stated. The whole class groaned while the children jumped up and down shouting 'WE LOVE SURPRISES!' Then Itachi gave the microphone to Kakashi.

"Now, the surprise is that Tsunade was so nice to rent out an entire villa. The villa has a tennis court, basketball court, outdoor pool, indoor pool, a beach with volleyball nets, a track, a fitness center, and a whole bunch of rooms for all of you to stay in."

Now the whole class and the children were jumping up and down in pure excitement.

"Now, now, calm down. You'll be living there until you graduate with the children. Now I want all of you to go back to your dorms and pack all of your clothes and necessities. We will be leaving tomorrow on a charter bus at 10:00 am. Get some sleep."

"So, let me get this straight, you called us in the middle of the night just to tell us that?" Naruto shouted in infuriation.

"Pretty much." Kakashi answered nonchalantly.

"Why didn't you to us yesterday in class?" Naruto shouted, flailing his arms around.

"…..I Forgot….. Now go get some sleep."Kakashi said sheepishly before exiting the room. Everyone groaned and filed out of the classroom with their children by their sides.

"Come on, Kirimi, let's go back to the dorm." I said, reaching for her hand. Neji and Sasuke shared a look before following suit.

"Hey, Sasuke, where is Karou?" I inquired.

"Oh, he's with Hinata." Sasuke said.

We got there pretty quickly because I was talking to Kirimi-chan about random things like poky sticks, our favorite candy, and what we like to watch on T.V. (cartoon wise.)

I didn't even notice Sasuke and Neji watching us with amused smiles, too engrossed in our conversation.

"Sasuke, you know your cousin is such a kid, right?" Neji said, eyeing me up and down.

"Yeah, I know, that's why she always got along with people while Itachi and I always distanced ourselves. But that's also her downfall. She may not show it, but when people don't like her, she gets really sad about it. I tried explaining to her that not everyone is going to like her, that you just have to deal with, but it still didn't seem to change her mind."

"Interesting," Neji said quietly, "I didn't know that."

"Tenten," Kirimi mumbled idly, rubbing her eyes, "I'm tired. Can you carry me?"

"Sure, sweetie," I said, picking her up. Kirimi wrapped her arms around my neck, legs around my waist and nuzzled her cheek into my collarbone. I couldn't give her a piggyback ride because I always drop people when I do. Insert nervous laugh here.

When we got back to the dorm, I put Kirimi down on my bed since she was asleep and we all packed our clothes and necessities. When I was finished, I scooted Kirimi over and settled in beside her. I closed my eyes and let a sigh escape my lips as I nodded of into a peaceful sleep.

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

My eyes fluttered open at the abrupt sound of the alarm clock Neji set last night. A groan escaped my lips as I peered into the room flooded with sunlight. I tried to sit up but found I couldn't because Kirimi was sprawled out on top of me, feet in my face and arms hugging my legs.

"What the hell?" I mumbled. There was the sound of faint chuckling from the other side of the room and I shot the two teens a glare.

"Oh, so you think this is funny?" I inquired, narrowing my gaze.

"Shhh," Sasuke mocked, "You don't want to wake Kirimi-chan, now do you?" He let out another laugh and shook his head.

"Oh, whatever," I said with a roll of my eyes. Then, I gently began to pry Kirimi from me but found I couldn't, as she was clinging to my legs like a koala bear.

"A little help, please, Neji?" I said frantically as he watched me with an amused smirk.

"Nah, I'll pass," Neji said, lying back down on his mattress.

"Why you little," I started but was interrupted by a small, soft yawn.

"Tennie-chan, can you please put me down?" Kirimi asked, an adorable pout on her face.

"Sure, sweetheart," I said, removing her from my legs and laying her down beside me.

"Well, since everyone took a shower the night before except Kirimi, then I guess the bathroom is all yours." Neji said, stifling a yawn.

"Um, well, I," Kirimi stuttered, shifting back and forth.

"What's wrong, Kirimi?" Neji inquired, a bit of concern in his voice.

"I don't know how to bathe." She said shyly. The three of us blinked confusedly. Then, Neji and Sasuke turned toward me and I sighed.

"Alright, fine, I'll help her bathe."

_**~15 minutes later~**_

"Kirimi, come back here!" I screamed. The little blonde tater tot ran out of the bathroom, butt naked, running around the whole room. Neji and Sasuke were helping me try to catch her, but she was too fast for us. Finally, Neji was able to catch Kirimi by sneaking up behind her and grabbing her from behind.

"Ok, someone take her, she's squirming and she's all wet from her shower. Goodness gracious, Tenten, you couldn't have dried her off?" Neji shouted as Kirimi wriggled in his grip.

"Well, I didn't get the chance to because as soon as I pulled her out of the bath tub, she ran off." I explained.

"Well, someone please take this child because- Kirimi, why are you crying?" Neji glanced down at the tot in his arms that was blubbering like a baby. Well, you know.

"B-because I'm c-c-cold!" Kirimi hollered, running over to me and wrapping her arms around my bare legs. I giggled and draped a towel around her shoulders.

"Alright, now, let's get you dressed and then we can start off to the bus. Sound good?" I asked Kirimi with a bright smile.

"YAY!" She screamed as she hopped onto my bed.

I walked over to her suitcase, which was in our dorm when we came back last night, and picked out a purple tank top with yellow tulips on it and black skinny jeans with purple sandals.

"I look soooo cute!" she beamed, marveling her reflection in the mirror.

"Come here, Kirimi, I need to comb your hair." I said as I got out a brush and a couple of hair ties.

I put her hair up in a high pony tail and then added yellow and purple hair ties with a matching head band my mother gave me when I was her age.

"Hmm, it looks like you're missing something. But what are you missing?" I asked Kirimi with a HUGE smile.

"Umm…Jewelry!" she answered enthusiastically.

"That's right," I walked over to my suitcases and pulled out a jewelry box. I sifted through the chains and rings and then pulled out a gold necklace that was shaped like a puzzle piece, draping it over her neck and then smiling. She held the metal puzzle piece in her hand and glanced down at it. There we words engraved into the shape that read _I will always be with you no matter what._

Then, I showed her the one around my neck that was hidden beneath my shirt. It had the same words on it, but mine was silver. I then stooped to her level and put them to together until they fit perfectly. They were puzzle pieces after all.

"See, Kirimi, I will always be here for you no- matter what. All you have to do is squeeze the necklace really tight and only think of me and I will be there, ok?"

"Okay," she said and hugged me. I hugged her back and kissed her on the cheek. Then, I turned to the guys who had smiles on their faces.

"Come on guys, its 9:50, we gotta get going."

"Neji wedgies, pick me up, please," Ordered Kirimi in the sweetest voice I have ever heard.

"What did you just call me?"

"Oh, Neji, just pick her up." I pouted then smirked when I saw a light pink tint crawl its way onto Neji's cheeks. He turned his head away and picked the little blonde cutie up into his arms.

"Meet you at the bus, koibito,"Neji said as he leaned down and kissed me on the cheek. Then, he walked ahead of me with his and Kirimi's suitcases and smirked again as he noticed the blush dusting my cheeks.

I stopped walking and touched the cheek he had kissed. I then smirked and power walked to catch up to Sasuke, Neji and Kirimi with one thought in my mind.

_Two can play at this game_

**So, I've been chatting with my friend while editing this and we had a humungous fight. I'm not really in a good mood but please comment. I hope you liked it and can't wait to read chapter seven.**


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven

_Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto does_

**Hey, so, we've finally made it to the new chapter! Yayyy! So, let's just get this going, I am too tired. Oh, and Happy Thanksgiving! My favorite holidayyyyyy :) :) **

"You've seemed to have done a good job with her so far," Kakashi commented, watching as Kirimi danced after a butterfly, "You've even got her all dolled up." He looked up at Neji and I. "Good job." I smiled.

"What did you expect us to do? Throw her in the oven?" I joked. Neji shot me a look and Kakashi sensei sweat dropped, shooing us off with a sheepish laugh and the wave of his hand. I sighed and took Kirimi by the hand and led her over to the charter bus.

"Won't this be fun?" I asked. Kirimi looked up at me with big sapphire eyes.

"What will?" she inquired.

"Riding the bus to the resort." The little tater tot stuck her tongue out and mimicked a gagging motion. Neji shot me an amused look and I shot him a _get out of here _look. He shrugged his shoulders and picked up the suitcases before boarding the bus.

"Well, I think you'll like it." I pressed on, pulling her toward the bus.

"Why?"

"Because," I said, lifting up my index finger, "Charter buses are known for their bathrooms and their…" we followed Neji up the steps and then Kirimi's mouth opened into an "o" shape. "TVs." I finished.

Kirimi ripped her hand away from mine and raced toward the first TV she could find. My lips curved up into a smile and I looked back toward Neji who was stuffing our bags into the luggage compartment.

"Let's sit here." Kirimi suggested, bouncing up and down as if she were hopped up on sugar. A giggle escaped my lips and I nodded I agreement.

"I call the window seat!" she exclaimed, hopping into the cushioned seat and shooting Neji and I a toothy grin.

"Okay," I said, "I call the middle, then." Neji gave me the stink eye and I returned it with a bitter sweet smile. Getting Neji back for that kiss was going to be a walk in the park.

"What movie will they be playing?" Kirimi asked.

"I don't know I said," watching as Choji and Mae boarded the bus. Poor Choji was lugging all of the bags, most of which I assumed were Mae's because they were pink and bedazzled, and also carrying their child on his back.

"Mae," he groaned, stopping in the middle of the aisle, "Could you _please_ help me out a little?" Miharu's emerald locks began to unravel out of her messy bun which I assumed she did herself as she slowly began to slip off of Choji's back.

"What? Don't tell me you're too weak to carry a few bags and take care of a _kid_." Mae said, her voice biting harshly at Choji's self esteem.

"No," he said, "But you're supposed to help out at least a little with this kid. And besides, _who needs_ seven bags?" Then, he shifted under Miharu's weight and tried to keep her from falling off of his back.

"What's in here, anyways? _Bazookas_? "

"No," she rolled her eyes exaggeratedly, "Three blow dryers, two hair straighteners, a curling iron, half of my closet, one fourth of my shoes and-"

"Geez, Mae, you need _that much_ stuff to cover up your ugliness?" I commented with a smirk. She stopped to shoot me an odious gaze before flipping her hair back over her shoulder and twisting her lips to the side.

"I'm sorry, did the ugly whore just say something to me?" she shot back.

_That's the best she's got? Really? _

I rolled my eyes. "Hey," Choji warned, "Not in front of the kids." Mae answered that with an eye roll and strode to the back of the bus and took a seat. And then Miharu slipped. My eyes widened and Kirimi gripped my hand tightly, shutting her eyes.

But there was no scream. No thud. Kirimi opened her eyes and my jaw dropped. Neji had caught her. I could feel the heat rising to my cheeks as he cradled the little girl in his arms protectively. What was it about him that made my heart stutter?

"That bitch really needs to get some sense slapped into her." Neji growled as he smoothed Miharu's hair back.

"Watch the language, Neji." I reminded him. He grunted and handed Choji the kid before bending down to pick up half of the load Choji was stuck with.

"Uh, thanks," Choji muttered, at a loss for words. Kirimi squeezed my hand and I glanced down at her.

"Neji-wedgies is a good daddy." She said softly, eyes downcast. My lips parted in awe and I smiled gently.

"Yeah," I agreed, "He is a good daddy."

XXXXXXXXXXXX

When everyone was loaded and on the bus, Kakashi sensei pulled out his bull horn and began to give instructions. "Now," he said, "Everyone fasten your seatbelts and make sure everyone is with you. I want you to make sure your kid is safe and comfortable because it will be a very long ride."

There were some murmurs and a few complaints and then Kakashi spoke again. "We will be showing the Lion King first," hurrays and whoots erupted throughout the bus and Kakashi sweat dropped.

"And then the second movie will be Ponyo." I smiled to myself. Ponyo was one of my favorites. "And then when the kids are all asleep, we'll be playing The Hollow." (I made this up to be a scary movie even though it's a really good book. IT'S ISNT REAL AS FAR AS I KNOW.)

There were a few murmurs and I swallowed. Scary movies? On a bus? In the dark? Oh, hell no.

"In a few hours, we'll be stopping at McDonalds for lunch and then we'll hand out a few snacks if the kids get hungry on the road. Then we'll stop by a restaurant for dinner where we will test you on how well you can manage your kids in a diner."

There were a few groans and I glanced over at Neji through the corner of my eye. It sounded like fun, actually, but I was a bit worried. There was an uneasiness settling in the pit of my stomach and it grew with each breath I took.

He hadn't said a word since the Miharu incident and he kept quiet while Kakashi was talking. His jaw was tightened and his breathing was slow, paced. _Was he alright? Was it something I did? Said? Maybe I shouldn't try to get him back. _

"Alright," Kakashi announced, "It's now time for lift off!" The little tikes hollered and kicked their feet and then the bus roared to life. More screams erupted and then the Lion King came on and all was quiet except for a few murmurs from the teens.

I glanced around me. Sakura was sitting up in the very front with Lee and Hinata and Sasuke were a few seats behind Neji and I. Temari was in the back, along with Ino and her clique, and I really didn't feel like talking to Gaara who sat across from Neji and I.

I sighed. _I'll just try to enjoy the movie…_

XXXXXXXXXX

"No," Kirimi pleaded, tears streaming down her cheeks as she outstretched her arms toward the television. "Don't die, Mufasa, don't die!" I pressed my lips together and shut my eyes.

"No, sweetie, he's not dead. He's just, um, going to the beach." I said, voice strained. I really should have taken some aspirin along.

"What do you mean?" she asked, bug eyed.

"Well," I started, "When people die, they go to an island resort that's in the sky where they can do _anything_ they want." Her eyes went big and I forced a smile onto my face.

"Great," Neji whispered in my ear, "Now she'll want to kill herself." I sweat dropped and sunk lower into my seat, rubbing my temples with the pad of my thumb.

"What's wrong?" Neji asked. My stomach churned and my head began to swim. _Was that concern in his voice?_

"I'm sort of prone to getting car sick." I confessed.

"And why didn't you inform Kakashi sensei about this?" he asked matter-of-factly. I shrugged my shoulders.

"I don't know," I said, "I didn't want to be a burden, I guess." I lifted a hand to my mouth and swallowed my breakfast. Gross. Neji sighed and placed a hand on my shoulder, twisting my body so I was facing him and then gently placing my head on his shoulder.

"Just close your eyes and try to get some rest." He soothed. I blushed, now very aware of his hand that was still entangled in my hair.

"Okay," I murmured into his arm. He was so warm and his skin was so smooth. _He must take as good care of his skin as he does his hair. Maybe I should ask him for some tips? _Soon, I began to nod off and everything went black.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

My eyes fluttered open at the sudden jerk of the bus. "Huh," I muttered drowsily, wiping some drool from my mouth and peering up at Neji from beneath my eyelashes. He glanced down at me and his lips curved up into a smile.

"Hey," he greeted, "It's time for lunch." I licked my lips and sat up in my seat.

"Oh," I said. Then, Kirimi popped into view and I graced her with a smile.

"How did you sleep?" she inquired. I blushed_. Did everyone see me sleep? Oh, shit, did they hear me snore?_

"Um, really good, actually, thank you." I turned to Neji. "You're shoulder is really comfortable." A small blush dusted his cheeks and I inwardly smiled. _Gotcha._ He cleared his throat and then unbuckled his seat belt.

"Come on," he said, "Everyone else is already outside." I nodded and unbuckled myself as well, taking Kirimi's hand in mine and then following Neji out of the bus. I had to squint when we stepped outside, though, because the sunlight was beaming down brutally.

"Geez," I muttered, stumbling out of the bus and walking into the restaurant. I had always hated McDonalds. Their food was just too fatty and their salads were too sweet. At least the soft drinks were good.

"Okay," I said, "What would you like?" Neji took a spot beside me and glanced at the menu wearily. I could tell he wasn't very fond of this place either. "I want a happy meal!" Kirimi exclaimed while pointing to the showcase of Hello Kitty toys.

I smiled. A devious yet brilliant way to get kids to eat their food. Well played. "Okay," I agreed, "But do you want a hamburger of chicken nuggets?"

"Chicken nuggets," she said while pressing her face up to the glass and ogling the toys. "I want that one!" she pointed to the Hello Kitty figure that was ice skating. Ellis, Naruto and Ino's child, walked up to Kirimi and said, "Well, I want that one." While pointing to another toy.

I smiled and then glanced back up at the menu. "Maybe I should just get an ice cream."

"Like that will help with your car sickness." Neji retorted. I shot him the stink eye and he shrugged. "Do what you want. I just don't want you to feel bad this whole trip." And then he brushed by me, stopping only for a second to whisper in my ear. "I was hoping you and I could have a really good time tonight."

My face reddened and then he brushed by me to talk with Sasuke and Kiba who were trying to control their kids who were playing with the ketchup dispensers. _Okay, it is so on. _

XXXXXXXXXX

I ended up ordering a Doctor Pepper with some fries and had even asked the cashier if we could get the ice skating Hello Kitty doll when Kirimi had a fit when she hadn't gotten the doll she wanted.

The fries were alright but they tasted super great when I dipped them in my soda. Salty and sweet-a match made in heaven. Kakashi had deducted seven points from Sasuke and Kiba's grade because of the mess their kids made with the condiments and they had ended up cleaning the mess themselves.

I laughed and threw back my head when Neji stepped onto the bus with an ice cream cone in one hand and some fries in the other. His lips twitched into a small, irritated smile as he sat down beside me on the bus.

"I never said I couldn't have one." He explained, licking off some ice cream. I watched his tongue as it slowly made its way around the entire cone. He made it so hard not to grab his ice cream cone and throw it behind me-replace that sweetness for another.

I averted my gaze back to my fries and began my process of dipping them in the soda again. He watched me curiously before taking one of his own fries and dipping it in with mine. He contemplated the taste before nodding his head.

"Not bad." He said. I smiled and then took one of my fries and dipped it into his ice cream. He watched as I opened my mouth wide and slowly lowered it in. "Mmm…" he titled his head to the left and then mimicked me.

"Who knew," he said, chewing his fry slowly, "That salty and sweet were such a good match?" I laughed and shifted in my seat as Kirimi, Miharu and Ellis appeared before us.

"Neji, Tenten, we're going to go sit in the back until it's time to go." I nodded.

"Okay," I said, "Have fun." And then they were off to go play with their toys and eat their fatty little nuggets. I sighed.

"I'm never taking my kids to McDonalds when I'm older." I said softly. Neji glanced over at me and smiled.

"Agreed." My face heated up and I ducked my head as I've seen Hinata do a couple of times. And, as if on cue, Hinata and Sasuke appeared and sat down across from us.

"Hey, how's it going so far?" Sasuke asked, taking a sip from his coke. I nodded in acknowledgment and went back to dipping my fries in my soda and stuffing my face.

"It's going pretty well," Neji answered, "But what I really can't wait for is tonight?" My head shot up. _Why does he keep talking about tonight? What's going on tonight? What's he planning? _I narrowed my gaze and unconsciously dipped my fry into his ice cream.

Hinata and Sasuke watched me eat it with wide eyes. I stopped, eyes darting between them as I closed my mouth and swallowed. The bluenette jabbed Sasuke in the side and then he resumed his talk with Neji. My brows furrowed. _What was wrong with sharing food with a friend? _

I shook it off and continued eating, not dipping my fires into his ice cream again until they left. "What was that all about?" I whispered into his ear as they returned to their regular seats. He shrugged and resumed eating. Something weird was going on and I was going to get to the bottom of it.

**Hey, so, longer than usual, right? Anyway, hope you enjoyed and pleeasseee comment! **


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter Eight

_Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto does._

**Writers block for this story is over and I'm on a roll form the last chapter so I'm going to keep going while I got his feeling min my stomach! :)))))) **

"Ponyo, Ponyo, she's a little girl with a round tummy!" Kirimi and Ellis sang in unison as they skipped hand in hand toward the restaurant. I had to say. Sharing ice cream and fries with Neji, watching Ponyo and now getting to eat in a restaurant with actual _good_ food… This was turning out to be a pretty good day.

My stomach grumbled and I blushed as Neji sent me a smirk. It fit him. I had to shake the thought away as Sakura and Hinata waltzed up to me and threw their arms around my shoulders. "Hey," Sakura said, giving me a cheerful smile, "I haven't seen you all day." I nodded.

"I know. I tried to reach you at the beginning of the trip but you were all the way in the front." She laughed and released me from her grip, Hinata following suit.

"So," she said, wiggling her eyebrows, "You, Hinata and I have to sit beside each other at dinner. We have some things to discuss." I blinked. Was it just me or were they acting really weird? Hinata's eyes darted between her cousin and I and I sighed.

"Guys," I said exasperatedly, "There is nothing going on between Neji and I. We just so happen to like salty and sweet foods mixed together and we're not afraid of germs." I crossed my arms over my chest it clarify it and stuck my nose up.

Sakura rolled her eyes and Hinata snorted. "Oh, please," she rebounded, "You and Neji act like you're practically dating. You share food, whisper in each other's ears and you slept on his shoulder, too." My face reddened.

"You saw that?" I asked quietly. Hinata's brows arched. "Did I happen to be snoring, by any chance?" I said in a lower voice, leaning in closer to her. She shooed me away ad I sighed.

"I was car sick. He was just looking after me. And I whisper in your ears all of the time." I gave them a fake laugh and then Neji appeared beside us. We all jumped and I silently thanked the Lord.

"Oh, Neji," I said, grabbing his arm, "Let's grab Kirimi and go ahead inside. I'm starved." His eyebrows rose and I caught the look Hinata and Sakura were giving me. I released his arm swiftly and made a run for the door. Much to my embarrassment, though, it didn't open when I pushed on it so I slammed my face right into the glass and then fell back onto my ass. Smooth.

There was a gasp and a few snickers and then Neji appeared by my side. "Are you dyslexic?" He said sarcastically, extending his hand to help me up. I took it gratefully and glanced up at the door to see the sign that read PULL.

"Aw, geez," I muttered.

"Your nose is all red." He commented, examining it closely. Our faces were just inches apart and I could feel my face heating up again. His hot breath caressed my cheek and stumbled back.

"Um, yeah, that's what I get for being so damn clumsy." I muttered, rubbing my head and grabbing the cool metal of the door handle behind me. A nervous laugh escaped my lips and I pulled the door open before heading inside backwards, gaze locked with Neji's.

He shot me a worried look but I was already inside, breathing my own air and sighing with relief. "Well, that was embarrassing." I muttered, tucking my hair behind my ear and looking around. Wow, this place was… Oh, hell no.

We were in a bar. And, I mean, not a stripper club or anything, and I'm sure they had real food other than beer and stuff, but there were girls dancing in miniskirts and loud music and, Lordy, drunk men.

"Um, Kakashi, are we in the right place?' I asked as everyone filed in and stared in awe.

"Yup," he said a bit too cheerfully, "You guys need to keep your kids safe and in check while, ladies, keeping your men stable." My eyes drifted back to the dancing girls and a pang of jealousy hit my heart.

_ Was Neji watching them? Was he a perverted pig like the rest of these guys here? Why did I even care?_

I pressed my lips together and glanced back at Neji who was watching me carefully. A blush rose to my cheeks and I averted my gaze quickly, turning back and lowering my head._ I wanted t go home. I wanted to go back to the bus. Back to where it was only Neji and I and I was resting my head on his shoulder. Back to his smooth skin and gentle touch. His warmth and love._ I shook my head.

_He didn't love me and he didn't touch me, either. That was just what I wanted him to do._ My eyes widened. _Oh my Kami…_

"Tenten," his even voice jerked me out of my thoughts and I was suddenly aware of the hand that was resting on my shoulder. He was so warm.

"Um, yes?" I answered, voice hoarse, knees weak.

"Are you feeling alright?" He inquired, feeling my forehead and furrowing his brows. "You don't have a fever." I shook my head and stumbled backwards.

"I'm fine." I lied. His gaze pressed further and I sighed. "I just…don't like the loud music. The fact that I was feeling sick on the bus and now the loud music. I hope they don't give me an alcoholic drink on accident." I shot him a weak smile and he accepted my excuse.

What a relief.

"Okay, class, find a seat with your children and whatever friends you want to join and then order. You have two hours." I let out a breath and glanced toward Hinata and Sakura who were already at a table with their "families" and waving Neji and I over.

I sighed and grabbed Kirimi's hand. "Come on, Neji, we're sitting with Hinata and Sakura." He nodded but didn't say a word, just followed behind me quietly.

"Tenten," Kirimi whispered loud enough for me to hear over the music, "I don't like it in here." I nodded.

"Yeah, me neither. But once we eat and use the bathroom, we'll be on the bus and you can go to sleep." She pressed her lips together and lowered her head. I glanced down at her and inwardly sighed. She looked really upset. "Besides," I said more cheerfully, "You'll get to eat with Karou and Tamaki."

She let out a breath and I took that as an okay. "Hey, guys," Sakura greeted, scooting over in the booth to make room. Kirimi took a seat beside Karou and I slid in beside her, Neji following suit. Somehow I felt better with him beside me, blocking out the rest of the bar.

Sasuke, Hinata, Sakura, Lee and Tamaki were on the other side of the booth, all of their eyes on me. "What?" I asked, finally. They all averted their gazes and I rolled my eyes. Was it that visible how much I wanted to ring their necks? Or maybe how much I wanted to shoot the dancing sluts on the other side of the room?

"So," Sakura said, trying to start a conversation, "Is anyone going to be bold enough to try the margaritas?" She gave a small laugh but no one laughed back. Her attempt at small talk failed and she hunched her shoulders.

"I will!" Lee exclaimed cheerfully. I scoffed and sunk into my seat. I could feel Neji's eyes on me and I sat up straighter. I felt guilty making his night miserable because I was such a jealous bastard. Besides, he said tonight was going to be special or something? I didn't want to ruin that for him.

"Okay," I said, "I will, too." Everyone's eyes went wide and Lee smiled enthusiastically. He gave me a thumbs up and turned to Sakura.

"What about you? Don't you want to be youthful like Tenten?" her eyebrows twitched and she sighed.

"Okay, I'm in." Lee smiled widely at her and Neji leaned in toward me.

"Are you sure about this?" he whispered. "I mean, if you felt sick in the bus when you were sober…well, what about when you're drunk?" I shrugged him off.

"Don't you want me to be fun and rowdy like those girls?" I shot back sourly, pointing towards the sluts with my thumb. He shook his head, not even bothering to look back over at them. My eyebrows rose and his gaze softened. He looked genuinely hurt.

My heart sunk and I clutched my chest through my shirt. The pain was too much. "Tenten," he said, grabbing my wrist, "I'm not like that." I averted my gaze, tears prickling the corner of my eyes.

"Well, I mean, you can do what you want because it's not like we're dating or anything." I sniffed and blinked back the tears and that's when the waitress came. Oh good mother of pearl. Another slut.

I looked up at her with daggers in my eyes and she shrank back in fear, giving me a nervous laugh. Then, she asked us what we wanted and Lee, Sakura, Sasuke and I all ordered margaritas while Hinata and Neji ordered soft drinks and the kids all got lemonade.

"So," Sasuke said, "Tonight…" Hinata blushed and glanced down at her lap. Neji averted his gaze to his napkin and started playing with it distractedly.

"What's going on tonight?" I finally asked, fed up with all of the secrets. Sasuke shot neji a look and then turned back to me.

"The scary movie." He said with a smile. I sweat dropped and glanced at Neji.

"You mean that was the big secret? It wasn't even a secret!"

"No one said it was." Sasuke pointed out. I crossed my arms over my chest and looked over at Kirimi. Why was she frowning?

"Hey, Kirimi," I said, placing a hand on her shoulder, "You feeling okay?" She nodded and wrapped her arms around herself.

"I'm just a little tired." She admitted quietly. I nodded.

"You wanna' lay your head on my lap?" I suggested. She nodded and turned over into a laying position. I placed my hand on top of her head and started to stroke her hair. And then the image of Neji stroking my hair while I was asleep came into my head and I winced.

I longed for it. I wanted it more than anything and I didn't know why. I'd just met him but when he kissed my cheek yesterday… I don't know, I guess I liked it. I liked it more than any fantasy of some super model kissing me. It felt better. It felt real.

I shook my head and swallowed, realizing that our drinks were here and sitting before us already. Wow. I was really out of it.

"Hey, Kirimi," I said distantly, "You want your lemonade?" She shook her head in my lap and I sighed. I was sort of regretting the whole being-ambitious-and-getting-Neji-to-like-me thing. That margarita looked like a hangover in a glass and I didn't want anything to do with it.

"Hey, Tenten," Sasuke said. I blinked and looked up. "You gonna' drink that thing?" I swallowed.

"Um…" And then Neji shocked us. All of us. He leaned over and took a sip of my drink. Then, with a grimace, swallowed and shot me a small, apologetic smile. What had he done? Oh my Kami, he was so sweet.

I leaned over and took a sip, myself, but instantly regretted it. That was the nastiest thing I had ever tasted before. Everyone laughed at my expression and I blushed. Then, Neji draped an arm over my shoulders and I leaned into the warmth of his chest.

I didn't know why he was doing it, exactly, but I wasn't going to turn the offer down. At this point, everything felt so right. I couldn't describe it, but the feeling of serenity he gave off made me comfortable.

XXXXXXXXXXX

I ended up giving Lee my drink because Neji and I both hated the taste and figured I'd be better off without it. Kirimi didn't eat much of her food, had a few fries and some of her lemonade but other than that, wasn't very responsive.

I made sure she went pee before we left and then we all loaded the bus for the last part of our ride. It was dark and the time was ten pm. Kirimi fell right asleep when we sat down and I had gotten Neji to grab the blanket and lion pillow pet from the suitcase for her.

Then, Kakashi started the bus and put in the movie and we were off. So, what was the _real_ secret the boys were hiding about tonight?

**Ok, too tired so I stopped I right there. Someone kill me-I'm drained! Anyway, have a good thanksgiving! Comment as a Thanksgiving treat for me and I will hand out pumpkin cyber pies! **


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter Nine

_Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto does_

**Hey, so I just finished (well, am almost finished) with thanksgiving dinner/lunch. I made EVERYTHING and I am so proud of my sweet potato casserole with marshmallows on top! Yuuummmyyyyy :))))) Happy Thanksgiving! **

My eyes fluttered open at the sound of someone screaming. I glanced around me idly, realizing for the first time that there was a green fleece blanket draping over Neji and I. _Had I fallen asleep during the movie?_ My eyes widened suddenly. _I had missed the movie! What about Sasuke and Neji's plan? Did I miss that, too?_

I shook my head and looked over at Neji to see him sleeping soundly, his head tilted towards me and his lips parted. He looked adorable. That's when I noticed the TV was off and there was the faint sound of snoring all around me. What time was it?

I slid my phone out of my pocket and flipped I open to reveal the time. Two in the morning. _I should probably go back to sleep. _I stifled a yawn as I turned to face Neji, curling my legs up so I was in a ball and tugging the covers up to my chin.

A smile graced my lips and I sighed in contentment. I could feel Neji's warm breath caress my cheek and I shuddered. And he didn't even have morning breath, either. It smelled vaguely of mouth wash and vanilla. _That sly beast. Did he seriously rinse his mouth out before going to sleep? _

I shook my head. Kirimi's hand had landed on my waist and she was now pressed up against my back, hugging me tightly. _Come to think of it, Kirimi didn't feel well earlier. I wonder what was wrong with her. Was it the food? Or maybe being stuck on a bus for so long? _

I let out a small breath and closed my eyes. I still couldn't believe I had slept through the whole movie. I mean, seriously, I was actually excited to watch it. Or maybe I was just excited to watch it with Neji. I mean, I hated horror movies…

XXXXXXXXX

I opened my eyes in a daze, my head lifting slightly. My neck throbbed in pain and I silently cursed to myself. I had slept on it wrong. "Wakey, wakey, eggs and bakey." I heard someone say in a sing song voice. Well, I knew for sure that it wasn't Neji's voice.

I peered up at the person leaning over me and was instantly hit with a blur of bright pink. I groaned and closed my eyes, ducking my head into me blanket and curling up into a tighter ball. "Oh, come on." I heard them say as they shook my shoulders harshly.

"Go away." I mumbled.

"It's time to get up." I let out a sigh through my nose and lifted my head from under my fuzzy refuge. "We're here." I could see clearly now and the first thing I saw was Sakura's bright, toothy smile.

"We're here?" I echoed. She nodded and tugged on my hand for me to get up. I rose to my feet and looked around me awkwardly. Everyone was already reaching for their bags and waking their children up, to the tikes' dismay. "What time is it?" I asked, rubbing the sleep out of my eyes. "And where are Neji and Kirimi?"

Sakura let out a breathy laugh. "It's like seven in the morning and Neji and Kirimi are with Sasuke trying to carry all of their luggage to the rooms." I nodded. Sakura took my hand suddenly and led me off of the bus. I could practically _taste_ her zeal as it emanated off of her. I was betting she was the only one who was excited right now.

When we stepped off of the death trap, to me relief, my breath hitched in my throat and I stopped dead in my tracks. The pinkette beside me placed her hands on her hips and turned to me with a grin. "Isn't it great?" She asked. I nodded in awe.

What we were staring at was a _huge_ resort that was surrounded by white sand, cerulean water and a forest of emerald. I could see a tennis court in the distance and even a Jacuzzi the size of a pool which was bubbling several different colors like a witch's brew.

"This is _amazing_." I breathed.

"Yeah, well, Kirimi's too tired to even open her eyes and take a look at it." I heard someone say from behind me. I glanced over my shoulder at Neji and smiled bashfully. "Would you take her? I've sort of got my hands full, here." I nodded and scooped her up into my arms.

Her golden locks were spilling out of her piggy tails and her clothes were rumpled and stained with something orange. I twisted my lips to the side, following Neji as he started up the walk to the resort.

"Hey, Neji…" I started. He looked back at me, shooting me a fleeting gaze before turning to face forward. "Do you think Kirimi is alright? I mean, I'd expected her to open her eyes instantly and be jumping around like all of the other kids. Plus, she didn't really feel well last night." He shrugged.

"Kids are a mystery, Tenten." He answered. "Just like women." My brows knit together and I closed my mouth. Was he referring to me? When we reached the front of the building, we were met by Itachi, Kakashi and the rest of the group.

"Okay," Kakashi said through his stupid bull horn, "Every 'family' will have to share a room with another 'family'. So, here are the roommate groups." He lifted a sheet of paper to his face and began to call of names.

"Sakura and Lee will be sharing with Kiba and Honoka." I glanced at Sakura through the corner of my eye and saw her shooting Honoka an excited smile. Well, no problem there.

"Choji and Mae will be sharing with Shikamaru and Temari. Ino and Naruto will be with Gaara and Serenity and Sasuke and Hinata will be with Neji and Tenten." A wide grin stretched across my face. This would work out just perfectly.

"Um, excuse me, you forgot about me and my suck ass partner." I heard a snotty voice sneer. We all turned our heads to see Karin shooting daggers toward Kakashi. He sweat dropped and looked over the list again.

"Oh, well, it appears I forgot to assign a room to you two." Kakashi said sheepishly. "Hm, well, I guess you two can share the master suite with Neji, Tenten, Sasuke and Hinata. Itachi and I can stay in the room where they were originally assigned to…" I spoke too soon.

I swallowed. This was going to be one shitty year. And, Lordy, I'd probably end up taking care of their child if they were anything like Choji and Mae. Poor thing. Oh, who am I kidding? _Poor me!_

"Well, there's no helping it." I heard Neji say from beside me. "If you find a knife in the kitchen, call me." Then, he picked up the bags and strode towards Sasuke and together they entered the building.

"Hey, tough luck." Sakura said as she appeared beside me. Hinata was behind her, a sorrowful look on her face.

"At least I'll be with Hinata. And, besides, I'll have Neji and Sasuke too." I said cheerfully, trying to turn the mood into one of happiness. Too bad I was never good at cheering people up.

"Yeah," Hinata agreed, "But now Sasuke will have to watch his back and, well, we were both looking forward to…" She trailed off, a tint of pink appearing on her cheeks. My eyes widened and Sakura let out a giggle.

"Well, I'll see you guys around." She said before turning on her heel. "That is, if you make it through the first night."

"Try the first hour." Hinata mumbled. I nodded silently and then grabbed Sakura's elbow. Her brows knit together and my gaze hardened.

"Look out for Honoka." I said, voice flat. She nodded, gaze never wavering. And that's how I knew I could trust her. "Bye." My hand lessened its grip and she was gone. "Alright," I sighed, "Let's do this." I shifted under Kirimi's weight and then followed Hinata into the building.

XXXXXXXXXXX

"I call the shower!" Karin shouted as we stepped through the door to our room. I slumped my shoulders. Great. Karin will probably use up all of the hot water and then I'll probably have to let Hinata use it before me because I'd hate to see her go last and not to mention the kids-oh and the guys.

"Hey," Sasuke said, peeking into the bathroom. "This one is for guys only." My brows furrowed and we all turned toward Sasuke. "See? The sign says men." Then, he pointed to another door. "That one says ladies, so I guess that's the one you three will be sharing." Well, that solved one problem.

"Hey, there's a third bathroom." Hinata added. We all looked into the direction she was pointing in. The sign on the door read KIDDIES and when Neji opened the door, our jaws dropped to the floor. There was a bathtub the size of a regular size Jacuzzi and it had jets covering every inch of it. There was also a counter with two sinks and a toilet stood in the left corner.

"Do we have one of those?" Karin asked anxiously. Kankuro opened the ladies room and let out a laugh.

"Yeah, you sure do." He said sarcastically. We all crowded around the door in apprehension and I sweat dropped. There was a shower with a see-through, glass door with some intricate design on it. There was also a counter top with two sinks and a toilet but there was no tub and no jets.

"Let's see if the kids will share with us." Hinata whispered into my ear. I let out a small laugh and waved her away.

"Who cares if we don't get a bathtub with jets," I said. Everyone turned their attention towards me. "There's a huge Jacuzzi out back the size of a pool. And, I mean, baths are gross anyway. You're just sitting in your own filth." Karin crossed her arms.

"Then why do the guys get a Jacuzzi?" She said in a sour tone as she kicked open the guys' bathroom to reveal a shower, Jacuzzi with jets and a three man sink. My eyes widened. Do they even make three man sinks?

"That is so not fair!" I shouted, pointing an accusing finger towards the men's room. Neji shrugged and lugged his baggage onto one of the beds. And that's when I noticed there were only four beds. My face reddened.

"Um, guys?" I said. Neji didn't look up, just kept on rummaging through his stuff as Hinata glanced at me curiously. "There are only four beds. How is that going to work?" Everyone turned to count the beds as if they didn't believe me and Karin laughed.

"I guess someone is going to have to sleep on the floor." She said with a sly smile. My brows arched.

"Hey, there's a note." Sasuke interrupted. Kankuro reached down and held it to his face.

"Dear teens," he started to read the note, "I bet you have taken quite a good look around the room and have noticed a few things. Like how there are three bathrooms and only four beds. Here's the fun part, kiddies. In order to be like a real family, the parents have to sleep in the same bed or else the house is not unified. So, have fun sleeping with your partners! The kids will all be sharing a bed by the way. Sincerely, Kakashi and Itachi."

My eyebrow twitched and I just so happened to catch Hinata's eyes light up_. I have to sleep with Neji? But that'll just make everything so much more awkward. It already seems like he's mad at me… _

"I am so not sleeping with gay boy, over here." Karin said, jabbing her thumb towards Kankuro.

"I'm not gay!" he shouted in defense. "Tons of guys where make up." He crossed his arms and stuck up his nose in a pout and Sasuke sighed. 

"Get over it, Karin, because no one else is going to offer you a place to sleep." Her face fell and she stuck her nose up.

"Whatever." She muttered before striding into the bathroom and slamming the door shut. I let out a breath.

"Kirimi," I whispered into her ear. She stirred in my arms and then opened her eyes idly. "Hey, we're in the resort room." She looked around in a daze and rubbed her eyes. Then, suddenly, her eyes widened and her nose wrinkled. 

"Can I get a bath?" she asked sheepishly. I laughed.

"Yeah, let's get you cleaned up." I said, setting her down on the floor and making my way towards her suitcase. "What do you want to wear today?" she shrugged and looked over her shoulder at Karou. Her face reddened and she turned to look at Negi.

"Am I the only girl?" she whispered. I nodded my head as I pulled out a light orange shirt that had a picture of Sully and Boo from Monsters Inc. on it and some white shorts will purple and orange flowers spotting them.

"Yeah, but you'll see Ellis and all of your other friends later today. Once we've gotten you cleaned up and fed, that is." She nodded and glanced down at her lap.

"I'm hungry." She said to her feet.

"Well, they have a huge café downstairs. We'll go get some breakfast when we're done showering." When that didn't seem to cheer her up, I added, "And I bet they have some chocolate crepes." She suddenly perked up and I smiled in satisfaction. "Come on," I said, extending my hand, "Let's go get a shower." She nodded and took my hand.

**.short… I am soooo soorryy about that. The chapter probably sucked but I jyst got back from the mall from yesterday and I bought all of the supplies I'll need to start making my perfumes! I'm really distracted because of that and I have a huge semester test tomorrow. Hope the next chapter is good. Comment. **


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter Ten

_Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto does_

**Wow. So, I cannot believe we've gotten this far already. Ten chapters? Calls for a celebration ;) So, I finished my book and I had JUST gotten it and I'm so pissed 'cause it is ADDICTIVE. So, um, yeah, kinda twitchy right now… **

"Eahhh!" There was a scream from inside the bathroom and I lifted my head from Kirimi's golden locks to see Karin storming out of the bathroom in nothing but a towel, Negi following after her.

"But Kankuro told me to see how big they were!" Negi hollered after her. She sent him a disgusted look and I had to shove my fist in my mouth to keep from laughing my ass off. _No, Tenten, don't do that. _I inwardly scolded myself.

Then, Kankuro strode through the door, Sasuke and Neji in tow and they all stopped dead in their tracks. Kankuro's face lit up, a huge grin spreading across his lips, and let out a whoot. Sasuke was trying just as hard as I was not to laugh and I noticed Neji looked mortified.

"Disgusting," he muttered underneath his breath as he passed by me. Sasuke dropped a bag of Funyuns on one of the beds and Negi immediately forgot about Karin and her "size". Kirimi rose from the ground and made her way giddily toward the bag of chips as well as Karou and I smiled to myself. 

"What the hell did you think you were doing?" she roared as Kankuro eyed her up and down.

"I'd say a 32 A." he turned to Neji. "What about you?" Said teen snorted and kept his eyes on his book. Something in my stomach twisted and I could feel my throat constricting. _Was I jealous? He wasn't even looking at her. Besides, _we aren't_ dating. _

I had to keep reminding myself that but for some reason the thought kept resurfacing. Something was tugging at my mind to go and talk to Neji but something also told me to leave him alone. I couldn't decide. He was ignoring me, that was for sure, but he looked kind of upset.

"Why you-" Karin started but was interrupted by a knock on the door. She had her fist raised in the air but lowered it and answered the door with a scowl on her face. "What do you want?"

"Um, the café closes in thirty minutes. I've seen that this is the only group who hasn't checked in to the café. You might want to, um, stop playing around and get down there if you want any breakfast." A woman with short, choppy purple hair informed us. Karin's face reddened and she started stuttering out excuses but the woman held up a hand and then walked away with the nod of her head.

The door slammed shut and she turned to face us. "Thirty minutes," she spat, "Stop shitting around." Everyone fell silent and she stormed back into the bathroom. I folded my hands in my lap and looked down at them. What was I going to do with Neji? How was I going to confront him? _When_ was I going to confront him? And tonight was going to be one hell of an awkward night if we didn't figure this out soon.

XXXXXXXXX

After I finished my biscuits and gravy and chugged down my hot chocolate, I checked to see if Neji was finished eating too. He was. I rose to my feet and made my way to the other side of the table so I could whisper in his ear. "Can we talk outside for a moment?" He glanced up at me with one skeptical brow raised and then nodded and followed me out the doors.

When we were alone in the hall, I clasped my hands together and lowered my head. It was silent and it was a very deadly and awkward silence. "Neji," I finally said, raising my head to meet his eyes. He was inspecting a painting hanging on the right side of the wall.

When he didn't answer or look my way, I tried again. This time he met my gaze and I bowed my head again. "Um, how are you?" I asked lamely. _Oh my gosh. Did I really just say that? _ He narrowed his gaze and cleared his throat.

"Fine." He answered. I nodded my head and the awkward silence enveloped us again. How long would _this_ go on? "How are you?" his question startled me and I jumped in surprise.

"Um," I bit my bottom lip, balancing on the balls of my feet, "Not so great, actually." This might get us somewhere. He arched a perfect brow and I let out a frustrated sigh. "Why are you ignoring me? Did I do something? Does this have anything to do with what happened in the pub?" It all rushed out before I could stop it and I felt the heat rush to my face when it was out.

He looked genuinely surprised. "I mean," I counteracted, "We haven't been talking and you never meet my gaze anymore and…and…I don't know." I let the rest of the words fall off my lips. He was silent and I thought he was going to just go back into the café when he said something surprising.

"I've been ignoring you?" My head shot up and I could see the look of worry in his eyes. And then I felt guilty.

"Well, I mean, it's not like I _expect _you to talk to me every minute of the day but…a simple smile would be nice now and then…" His brows knit together and he took a step closer. I could feel the heat rise between us and I took a step back out of nervousness. Then, I took a step forward and he looked confused. So I took another step backwards.

He seemed oddly amused. I shook my head and clutched it in my hands. "I don't know how I feel about this." I admitted.

"About what?" he whispered. I looked up to meet his eyes and found they were pooled with sincerity. It made my heart melt into a puddle at my feet. I shrugged my shoulders.

"I don't know…I just…" I clamped my mouth shut and started over. "I don't want it to be awkward between us." He nodded in understanding and then sighed.

"Come." He said, taking a seat on a bench beside the doors to the café and patting the seat beside him, "Sit with me." I took a seat beside him and discreetly scooted away. What could I say? I was nervous.

"Sasuke told me that you don't like people disliking you." He said suddenly. Now _that _surprised me.

"He said _what_?" My heart was stuttering, double time, and I had to lean away and take a few deep breaths to calm myself. "Why would he say that?"

"Is that why you keep acting so close to me? Is that why you don't want me to ignore you?" My eyes widened and my palms began to sweat.

"I, um," I couldn't speak. How could I explain that the real reason was because I _might_ like him? I couldn't. "Yeah," I lied, "That's it. I guess you just act like you hate me or something. It really gets on my nerves." I twiddled my thumbs.

"Oh." He shot me a weak smile and rose to his feet. My gaze lingered on him as he walked back into the café, leaving me alone in all of my guilt and shame. I couldn't do it and now it was probably even more awkward than before. _Greeeeaaat._

I sat there a few minutes longer to let the situation sink in and to make sure I wasn't going to break down in front of everyone. Then, I rose to my feet and walked through the double doors. The smell of bacon and peppermint tea filled my nostrils and I let out a sigh. I made my way to the table to find everyone finishing off their last bites and talking it up jovially.

"Hey," Sasuke said, looking up from his tomato omelet, "Where were you?" I shook my head.

"Taking a bathroom break." Sasuke raised a brow.

"With Neji?" The heat rose to my face and I took my seat.

"Uh, I didn't see him go before we left so I thought he might have to go, too." When Sasuke didn't seem to buy it I added, "Well, I was just being considerate." And I crossed my arms for emphasis. He shrugged and plunged back into the conversation, leaving me on the outside looking in. Just like usual.

Tears began to sting my eyes and I shook the thought away. _No, Tenten, you're not going to let the past catch up to you. You've worked too hard to let it end like this. _Kankuro finished up his waffles and then we all exited the café. Kirimi kept swinging our hands back and forth as we made our way back toward the room.

I could feel Neji's gaze on my back and I tried to shrug it off. But I couldn't. It _burned_. I tried to focus on something else, like Hinata and Sasuke stealing a few busses now and then whispering sweet nothings in each other's ears. It ticked me off.

When we reached our room, we found a note attached to door and Sasuke peeled it off and read it aloud. "Dear families, I hope you had a nice night and delicious breakfast. Here is a list of activities you can all participate in today. Remember, you cannot participate in the activities scheduled for tomorrow or the rest of the week. Make sure to let the children decide. Have fun. Lunch is at 12:30 in the dining hall and dinner at 6:30-same place."

Kankuro snatched the paper from Sasuke's hand and looked it over. "Ah, cool, they have paint ball." I rolled my eyes.

"Two year olds cannot play paintball." I said, seizing the note from his grip. "Let me see…Oh, that's it. This says activities for parents. And they're only open during nap and snack time." Kankuro crossed his arms and began to pout but I shooed him away with the wave of my hand.

"You know," Karin said suddenly, "Just because Kankuro and I have to sleep in the same room as you guys, it doesn't mean we have to spend the _day _with you too." Hinata and I shared a hopeful look. "So, Kankuro and I will be taking Negi and leaving." Then, she sauntered off, calling for Kankuro to grab Negi and hurry the hell up.

Now all we needed to do was decide on an activity and it looked like most of them were sports. My weakness. And Sasuke knew it, too. .Life.

**I'd write more but my dad is being stupid and wants to move my desk…Yeah….Life. Hope you enjoyed that very short chapter. Comment please. **

XXXXXX


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter Eleven

_Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto does_

**Hey guys. So, I've been doing a lot of stretching at tae kwon do and my body really hurts right now And I have a rug burn on my back from doing 400 sit ups last night :/ so, um, comment and, uh, enjoy…**

After about an hour of playing soccer, having my foot miss the ball and my face hit the floor about three times and twelve bruises later, we headed down to the dining hall for lunch. I wasn't the only one with bruises, though, because Hinata had quite a few on her calves and Sasuke had a few from ramming into Neji so many times.

When we reached the dining hall, I was more than happy to see Sakura and Ino talking it up with Honoka. _At least Honoka is having a good time. And it looks like Ino and Sakura are letting her in to their conversation. _

"Hey guys," I gave them a weak smile as we approached. Sakura and Honoka looked up at me, smiles on their faces. Ino was still rattling on, though, about something Shikamaru had unforgivingly done to embarrass her.

"Hey," Honoka greeted while reaching out to give me a hug. I squeezed her back and when she released me said:

"What's for lunch?"

"Chicken alfredo al a mode." Sakura said with an eye roll.

"Well, is it _good_?" Sasuke wanted to know. Sakura shrugged.

"Kakashi prepared it himself, and he's really proud of it, so we kinda have to eat it. I mean, if you don't want to fail, anyway." I sighed.

"This is probably another obstacle, you know, to make sure our kids don't hurt his feelings or something." I added an eye roll for emphasis. Ino stopped talking (yes, she was talking all this time) and looked at us blankly.

"Wait. What?" We all sweat dropped and then there was the sound of a bell ringing. Kakashi was standing before the long dining table, a majestic, silver bell in hand.

"Quiet, everyone." he commanded. The room went silent and he cleared his throat. "Itachi and I have prepared a wonderful lunch for all of you by ourselves. Chicken Alfredo, orange or grape soda, for nutrition purposes of course, and Italian bread sticks." There were a few murmurs. "And you have to eat all of it or I take off ten points for each thing you leave on your plate." Everyone groaned and he let out a laugh before exiting the room.

"Let's take our seats." Hinata suggested. Everyone agreed and we made our way to the long mahogany table.

"The bread sticks look good." Sakura commented as she took her seat.

"Hn," Neji grunted, "I've seen better." We all turned to him.

"Well, have _you_ been to Italy recently, Neji-_san_?" Sakura asked, eyebrow raised.

"Actually, yes, and these aren't even _close_ to what they look like. These were probably bought at Wal-Mart, in fact." My jaw dropped.

"You've been to _Italy_?" I said in awe. He nodded.

"My family is half Italian. Where do you think we get our dark hair, light eyes and pale skin from?" I was completely baffled. That is all I have to say. I picked up my fork and started to twirl it onto my fork, lifting it to my mouth and then taking a bite. I chewed, stopped to think and chewed again.

When I swallowed, tears began to prickle in my eyes. "Tenten? Are you okay?" Lee asked from across the table. I nodded, reached for my grape soda and took a swig. Then, my throat began to burn and I scarffed down part of my bread stick. It tasted like ash.

I began to choke on my tasteless food and Neji was by my side in an instant. "Tenten? What's wrong? Are you choking?" .Gosh. If there is one thing in this world that I hate it's when people ask you if you are choking. What does it look like I'm doing? Sucking on a fucking chode? _Seesh._

I nodded, closed my eyes and then swallowed the lump of mush in my mouth. I took a few deep breaths, the lightheadedness fading and then opened my eyes. Everyone was staring at me, forks raised in mid air.

"Go on," I said, "Take a bite." Everyone hesitated and then did as I said. Everyone except Neji since he was still by my side, kneeling on the floor. In a few seconds, everyone was gasping for air and taking swigs of their sodas before coughing and spewing.

"Need…Water…" Sasuke croaked. I nodded and turned to Sakura who was making the same mistake I had made. She reached for the bread stick and tore off a bite before stopping in bid bite and spitting it out.

"What's going on?" Neji asked.

"The pasta has chili powder in t or something." Hinata squeaked.

"And the soda makes it worse." I added.

"And you were completely right about the bread sticks, Neji. I'm so sorry about what I said earlier." Sakura chimed in weakly. He raised an eyebrow. Then, I turned toward Lee who was scarfing down his pasta as if he were Naruto eating ramen.

My jaw dropped. "Lee, how can you eat that stuff?" I wanted to know, pointing an accusing finger at him. He stopped chewing and swallowed.

"This heat is so youthful, I cannot help it." Everyone sweat dropped and he continued to eat. Then I paled.

"How are the kids going to eat this stuff?" I inquired.

"We could feed it all to Lee." Honoka suggested, glancing toward said boy nervously. Kiba laughed and draped an arm around Honoka. A red blush tinted her cheeks and all of our jaws dropped.

"Kiba?" I shouted. "What are you doing? Get your hands off of her!" He looked genuinely confused to tell you the truth. Honoka's face reddened and she ducked her head the way Hinata usually did.

"Why?"

"Because you're a pervert!" I shouted, pointing an accusing finger at him. He raised his eyebrows.

"But aren't I allowed to touch my own girlfriend?" My jaw dropped even more. I turned to Sakura. She was eyeing her breadstick ruefully.

"Sakura, did you know about this?" I asked. She looked up from her grey mush and shrugged.

"Yeah, well, we do live together now. I know a lot of what goes around." I shook my head in bewilderment.

"Now you know how I feel." Neji whispered in my ear. I rolled my eyes at him.

"Well, you and Neji touch each other so why can't I touch my own girlfriend?" Kiba asked. My face paled and then reddened before turning purple and black and a whole bunch of other colors.

"That doesn't concern you!" I roared, leaning across the table and poking my nose to his. He shrunk back and I watched him, body shaking, brows twitching.

"OK…" Neji said, grabbing my shoulders and pulling me back down to sanity. "Let's just eat this shit and chug down our sodas so we don't fail." Lee looked up, Alfredo sauce all over his face.

"I will eat anyone's pasta who doesn't want it." He said. I pushed mine to him so fast his eyebrows did a twitchy salsa dance and everyone around us laughed. I crossed my arms over my chest.

"Oh, you have a little something on your face." Sakura said, leaning toward Lee and wiping it off with the pad of her thumb.

"OH, don't tell me." I said, flailing my arms around. Neji sighed and took my hand in his, leading me toward the room just outside of the dining hall.

"Okay, what's up?" he asked when we were far enough so no one could hear us. He dropped my hand and crossed his arms over his chest. I pouted, mimicking his pose, and lowered my head.

"Nothing's wrong." I said. "I'm just worked up about lunch. It's my favorite meal of the day…" He snorted and my head shot up. "What?" I demanded.

"That's your excuse. Pretty pathetic." My heart fell into my stomach. "Now," he said, stepping closer and looking at me with those huge, glassy eyes that showed twenty emotions at once. Ooh, I'll list the ones I see!

Sadness, sincerity, concern, nervousness, need and angst. Wait-WHAT?

"Tell me what's really bugging you." I swallowed. Once again, just like this morning, we were so close and I could feel the heat rising between us. My heart began to melt, just like any other time he showed concern for me, and my knees began to wobble.

My heart was stuttering out of control and I did something shocking. I broke down. _Crying_. I _never_ cried in front of people. And what's more shocking is that I flung myself into his arms and pressed my cheek into his chest.

Sap.

My body was racking and my knees finally gave out on me. I fell to the floor and Neji caught me just in time so I didn't hurt myself. We were both sitting on the ground, me cradled in his arms and he sitting with his back against the wall.

I was the most awkward person on the planet. And what's worse is that we have to sleep with each other tonight. And the next night. And the night after that. And every other night until this year is over.

Not that I didn't want to…

"Tenten," he whispered, smoothing out my hair and kissing the top of my head. My breath caught in my throat and I hiccupped. Had he just kissed my head? _Multiple times_?

I sniffed and lifted my head to meet his gaze. It was broken. And that broke me.

"Neji," I whispered back. He brushed my bangs out of my face and wiped away my tears with the pad of his thumb.

"What's going on?" He whispered. My lower lip began to tremble and I started crying again. But Neji didn't seem to mind. He just pulled me back into his chest and whispered things like: it's okay, don't cry, everything will be better.

When I had composed myself, at least as well as I could for a crying, sobbing mess, we sat there in a comforting silence and he let me breathe without bombarding me with questions. Then, he asked: "So, do you want to talk about it?"

I shook my head. _Did_ I want to talk about it? I didn't know. He'd think I was stupid if I told him why I had broken down.

"Are you sure?" he whispered. I sniffed.

"I don't know." I confessed. I lowered my voice to a whisper "You'll think I'm stupid." He looked hurt.

"I swear I won't." I licked my chapped lips. Could I trust him? _Of course_ I could. How could I even think twice about something like that? He had just held me while I broke down into a mess and didn't even crack a smile.

"I-" The door swung open and Sakura appeared, a huge smile on her face.

"Guess what. Lee just ate everyone's pasta. So all we have to do is manage to stick those breadsticks in our mouths and finish off our sodas and we're good to go. Well, until Kakashi's next evil plan." Her eyes were closed and she didn't even notice us until she opened them.

"Oh." Her voice fell to a whisper and she backed up into the door. "Sorry, I, um, didn't mean to. I didn't know." She opened the door and was gone. I let out a shaky breath.

"Can we talk this over tonight?" he asked, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. I gave him a weak smile and nodded. "In bed." He whispered. I could feel my face heat and I buried my head into his chest one last time to inhale his scent. He always smelled good. Like clean laundry and snicker-doodle cookies.

"Come on," he said. I lifted my head and wiped my eyes. "Let's get back in there before Sakura blabs to everyone about this." I nodded and we headed back into the dining hall to finish off our gawd awful breadsticks.

XXXXXX

"So, next up is…basketball." Hinata said. I sighed. More bruises. Hadn't my face, and heart, had enough already? "And we have to play against another team so…" Sakura smiled and nodded. "Yeah, Honoka and Kiba can be on me and Lee's team. You and Sasuke can be on Neji and Tenten's team." She cast me a fleeting look and then grabbed a basketball.

"Let's play ball!" she shouted.

"Um, Sakura, that's for baseball." Lee said with a sweat drop. Sakura laughed manically, completely oblivious to her boyfriend's comment. Then, we all began to play. Sasuke kept calling defense to me, but I had no idea what that meant, and soon I was on the ground, like usual.

Neji came up to me and extended his hand which I gratefully took. "Defense means you go over there." He said, pointing toward a direction (lol I know nothing about basketball). I nodded and murmured my thanks before limping off to that section of the court. Sasuke could finally breathe with relief and he threw me the ball. Which was a total mistake, of course. Though, I don't know why he hadn't seen it coming in the first place.

I threw the ball towards the net and it hit the rim, bouncing off and striking Kiba right in the nose. Honoka gasped, as did I, and everyone ran over towards him.

"Aw, shit, Tenten" he muttered, holding his hand to his nose. Kirimi gasped.

"He said a bad word."

"Yeah, Kiba," I mock scolded. This earned a smile from Sasuke and Neji, but Kiba didn't seem to think it was so funny.

"I think it's bleeding." He moaned.

"Oh, be a man." Sakura said. Honoka knelt over him, her breasts in his face, which caused his nose to shoot out blood. He giggled drunkenly and then fell unconscious. Everyone sighed and Honoka blushed.

"You'd better get him to the emergency room, Honoka." Sakura said. "We'll look after your kid until you get back." She murmured her thanks and began to rag Kiba off to the emergency room. Also known as the nurse.

"Well, look at the time…" Sasuke said, checking his expensive watch. "It's already five thirty."

"We should get going, then." Sakura said.

"Yeah," Hinata agreed, "Everyone must be hungry from sipping lunch."

"Yeah, except Lee." I pointed out grumpily. Everyone laughed at his innocent face and we started back to the dining hall even though we had quite a bit of time left before dinner actually started.

I held Kirimi's hand in my left hand and swung arms with her like we usually did. Then, Neji surprisingly took my other hand and held it in his. He was quite a mystery. But maybe tonight when I share my secret, he'll share some of his, too.

**Woah. That was longer than most of my chapters…I think…Lol, too tired to really tell... So, hope you enjoyed, please comment :) Because I love you and you love me and we're all a big happy Naruto family…. 3 Meh… **


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter Twelve

_Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto does_

**You know what I just realized? There's no plot to this story… I mean, do I just keep writing chapters about their days in the resort for a whole **_**year**_**? And then what? They go home and that's the end? Seriously-what kinda crapola story is that? So, if you have any ideas or anything…that would be really nice…So….yeah…comment :) **

Tonight did not go well. That's all I have to say about it. First, Kakashi cooked our meal _again,_ probably tying up the real chefs in the closet and taping their mouths shut, and we had to go another meal without eating. Seriously. The food was so bad, even Lee couldn't eat it. So, we had to throw it in the bushes outside when he wasn't looking and try to suffice the kids until dinner was over and we could haul ass out of there.

Then, on our way back to our room, Kankuro, Karin, and her clique streaked the halls. They were laughing drunkenly, so we all just assumed they had been drinking. Neji shielded my eyes and I shielded Kirimi's. Then, the security guards chased after them and forced us to take Negi back to the room with us and look after him. Though, I had suspected that be the case since we first arrived here.

To say the least, I wasn't really surprised.

I let out a disgruntled sigh and flopped down onto my bed. Closing my eyes, I pictured Neji and I walking side by side, hand in hand. He had held my hand on our way to dinner and on our way back from dinner.

Peeking an eye open, I discreetly watched him read his book on the other side of the room. It was so annoying how he sent me mixed signals along with the cold shoulder. He hadn't said a word to me sine we got back to the room.

I felt something tug at my hand and I peered over at Kirimi. "Tenten," she whined, holding her stomach, "I haven't eaten since breakfast! Can I please get something to eat?" I gave her a weak smile and nodded my head.

"Yeah, I'm kinda' hungry, too." I admitted, lifting myself off of the bed and dragging Kirimi with me to the door. "Neji," I called over my shoulder, "Kirimi and I are going to the vending machines. Watch Sasuke and Hinata for me while we're gone." I sent him a wink but he just shrugged me off with a 'hn'.

I sighed and let my shoulders fall. Then, I opened the door and led Kirimi down the hall to the vending machines. "What should we get?" I pondered aloud while scratching my chin thoughtfully.

"I want the Oreos." Kirimi said while pointing toward the cookies. I nodded.

"Okay, let's get Oreos, goldfish, some skittles, a snicker bar, hm, how about that?" I pressed my face to the glass and peered in. It looked like a bag of chips but I had never heard of the brand before. I shrugged. "Okay, that too!" Kirimi clapped giddily as I stuck my money into the slot and started pushing buttons.

"Hey, Tenten, whatcha' up to?" I turned around, money in hand, and a wide smile spread across my face.

"Hey, Kiba, how's the nose?" he snorted and poked at his nose thoughtfully.

"Yeah, it still hurts." I gave him a sheepish smile and he shot me a toothy grin. "Could you walk with me for a while? I need to talk to you about something." My brows knit together and I nodded, slipping the bill into the slot and pressing another button.

"Yeah, just let me drop these little presents off at my room first." Then, I turned to Kirimi and pinched her nose playfully. "Plus this one, too." She giggled.

"Okay, let me help you with those." He grabbed an armful of snacks and let out an exasperated sigh. "Well, we know where you get your boobs from." My jaw dropped and I slapped him on the head. Hard.

It echoed throughout the entire hallway and once I'd done it, I completely regretted it. "Oh my gosh," I squealed, covering my mouth with my hands, "I am _so_ sorry. Are you alright? Oh, man..." I looked around wildly, my face blood red.

"Damn, Tenten, first the nose, now my head? I wouldn't be surprised if I had a concussion." I pulled out a bag of beef jerky from my pile of junk food and offered it to him, a sheepish smile on my face.

"Beef jerky?" He gave me an unamused look before snatching it from my hands

"How the hell is this going to help me?" he said, eyeing it like some foreign bomb.

"Like this," I said, snatching the bag from his hands and rubbing it all over his head. He stood there, mouth slightly curved into a smile, as I ripped open the bag and shoved some jerky into his mouth. He gave me a choked laugh and then spit out the meat.

"Such a violent girl." He said with the shake of his head.

"Such a lecherous boy." I shot back. A blush tinted his cheeks and I gave him a slight chuckle. "Don't ever do what I just did." I whispered to Kirimi while taking her hand in mine and grabbing the rest of the snacks.

"Come on," I called over my shoulder to the dazed boy. He rushed to my side and we began to walk back to the room. On our way back, Kirimi grabbed a handful of goldfish and began to chomp as Kiba discussed his afternoon at the hospital.

"Well, at least you got to eat something edible." I retorted once we'd reached the door. He laughed.

"Did Kakashi cook dinner, too?" I nodded. "Oh," he let out a laugh, "Now I understand why you have so much junk food."

"Yeah," I said, opening the door and ushering he and Kirimi in. I dumped the food on me and Neji's bed and then directed Negi, Kirimi and Karou to chow down. The stoic Hyuga looked up from his book, brows raised. "Well, I couldn't let them starve." I defended. He shook his head and set his book down.

"Why are you here, Inuzuka? Nose still bugging you?" He let his lips curve up into a mocking smile and I had to cover my mouth with my hand to keep myself form laughing. Kiba snorted and rolled his eyes.

"Tenten and I were just about to go for a walk." Neji's brows arched into a quizzical expression and his jaw tightened.

"Is there something you need to talk about, Tenten?" he asked, turning to me. I shrunk back and shook my head. Did he look jealous? He looked angry, that was for sure. "Hn," he turned away and resumed his position on the bed, book in lap.

"Carry on." He said. I let out a breath and tugged on Kiba's shirt sleeve.

"Let's go-quick." I whispered. He nodded and followed me to the door.

"Oh, and Tenten?" I stopped and turned to face Neji.

"Yeah?"

"Don't be gone too long. We have something to do tonight." My cheeks began to heat and I nodded rapidly, turning back around and shoving Kiba out the door. When the door was closed behind me, I let out a breath and motioned for Kiba to follow me down the hall and out onto the patio.

"What was that all about?" He questioned, holding my gaze. I shrugged, kicking at a small pebble with my toe.

"Neji gets jealous easily." I mumbled. He smiled and looked off into the distance. A warm breeze tore through the still night and I let it envelope me. It reminded me of when I used to visit Sasuke and Naruto back in the summer. We'd climb down though the forest until we reached an open field with a huge cliff where we'd all lie down and watch the stars together.

The warm breeze reminded me of home. My real home.

The moon shone brightly above us and there was a plethora of stars out. Just like those nights with Sasuke and Naruto. Kiba's voice startled me out of my memories and I was forced to tear my gaze away from the glowing sphere.

"Honoka means a lot to you, doesn't she?" the question shocked me. I hadn't really thought much about why he wanted to talk to me so badly, but now that he popped the question, it completely made sense.

He loved her.

My cousin.

The only family member I had who loved me back.

I nodded. "Yeah," I said, voice barely above a whisper, "She means a lot to me." He nodded.

"Tenten…you and Neji…tell me what it feels like to be loved." I jumped back a bit at his abruptness. _To feel loved? Neji didn't love me…_

"Um," My voice suddenly felt _very _dry and it was all I could do to keep myself from peeing my pants from the embarrassment. "Neji…doesn't…love me…" I cleared my throat and turned away.

"What are you talking about? I see the way he looks at you. That's love. And the way he acts so protectively toward you? Hell, he gets jealous so easily it's as f you guys are married and I'm some lecher or something…" I rolled my eyes.

"Hey," he grabbed me by the shoulder and spun me around to face him. "You can't deny it. He has at least_ some_ feelings for you."

"Oh, he has feelings for me, alright." I muttered. Kiba pressed his lips together and took a step back, lifting his face toward the moon.

"Does Honoka love me? I mean, she likes me, yeah, but we never really connect the way you and Neji do…" My heart slammed into my chest and I let out a gasp. Kiba didn't seem to notice. His voice dropped to a whisper. "Am I even lovable?" I felt something for Kiba right then. I felt terrible. And I felt conceited.

All I ever did was complain about how awful my life was and how no one loved me. Or, at least, I complained to myself, anyway.

"Kiba," I rested a hand on his shoulder and he shot me a weak smile. I could see the tears brimming in his eyes and chose to pretend like I hadn't seen them. "You are loveable. _Very _lovable. And, Honoka does love you, I know that much." He turned to face me, eyes hopeful.

"Really? Did she say that?" I sweat dropped.

"Well, er, no, but, uh…" he sighed and shrugged me off. I let my hand fall to my side and with it fell my heart. I ground my teeth together, confidence taking hold, and resumed my position, except this time gripping his shirt so tightly it left an unvanishing wrinkle in its place when I released him.

Kiba looked surprised to say the least.

"Have you even _seen_ the way she looks at you? When you sit next to her, talk to her, flirt with her? She blushes constantly when she's around you, and always smiles and laughs at your jokes, even though most of them aren't even funny. And you know that she loves you if she laughs at that one you tell about the dog and the guy with the boner." I paused to take a breath, sure my face was completely red by now.

Then, Kiba and I bursted out in fits of giggled simultaneously. I wiped the tears form my eyes and let out a sigh. "But, seriously..." I said, back to business. "Just tell her you love her. And make it good. Not corny or anything." I shot him a grin and he mirrored my expression.

"Yeah, okay, I'll do it tonight. In bed." I sweat dropped.

"Kiba, I swear, if you do anything to her, touch her glory hole or squeeze her tits, I'll make sure that dogs come after your bone." He shrunk back and raised his hands in surrender.

"Deal." He squeaked out. I nodded and let out a breath.

"Good. Now, come on, I wanna' get a shower and head off to bed. I'm beat…" Kiba snorted and began to walk back inside.

"You mean you want to go after Neji's bone?" My face reddened and I slammed my fist into his head. He let out a cry and I covered my mouth with both my hands.

"Beef jerky?"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

I let out a sigh of relief as I stepped out of the shower. The fog wrapped around my body like a towel as I made my way toward the door to lock it and grab a towel from the rack. I eyed myself in the mirror. I didn't exactly feel comfortable sleeping beside Neji. I mean, what if I farted or something? Or I sweat and smell like BO? And what if I snore? Do I snore? I didn't know. Oh, Kami, and I'd most likely have morning breath when I woke up…

I sighed and began to brush my teeth. _As long as you brush your teeth and rinse your mouth with mouthwash three times, then you'll last until midnight…Then you can get up and wash your mouth out again…Or maybe that's too much. Am I over thinking this? _

I spit out my toothpaste and began to rinse._ Maybe I should up my hair up. It would like nice the next morning if I put it into braids or a bun. And I need to make sure I lather my skin with my snicker doodle lotion. Oh, shit, my pajamas! I didn't know I was sleeping in the same bed with Neji, so I only brought some booty shorts and a tank…Kami, what am I going to do? _

When I finished brushing my teeth, I put my hair up into a messy bun and brushed out my bangs. Next, I applied lotion to my breasts, legs and arms and then began to change into my pajamas. They were a pair of pink, fuzzy, booty shorts with cherries covering them and a plain, red tank top to match. When I was finished, I looked myself over in the mirror.

I actually looked kind of..._hot_. I smiled to myself and winked at my reflection. And then I realized how completely y idiotic I was acting and rushed to pick my clothes up and haul ass out of there.

And when I did that, I was face to face with quite a few scenes. The first thing I saw was Kirimi, Karou and Negi all tucked under the covers in their own miniature bed all sleeping soundly. I made an _awwww_ face and then turned to see Hinata and Sasuke sleeping in their bed. Sasuke was lying on his back, arm draped over Hinata's shoulders as she curled into his chest. It was actually kind of cute.

And then I saw Neji, standing before me in nothing but boxers. Except, his back was to me. And thank Lordy, because if he had been facing me, he would have seen my face light up a bright, cherry red to match my outfit.

But then, because the universe hates me, Neji turned around and paused to look me over. My eyes fell directly to his groin and I inwardly smacked myself. _Control yourself! _I pressed my lips together and turned my head to try and hide my blush. But it was no use. The way he was raking over my body with those pearly, lavender eyes made my heart throb, along with my member.

"Tenten," he said, his voice only a whisper. I met his gaze and our eyes locked. Then, he beckoned me to him, and like a puppy obeying his master, I followed without a second thought. And once we were a foot apart, he reached out, grabbed my arm and pulled me into his embrace.

My hands found their way to his chest and I pressed my face up against it, savoring the warmth that emanated from his skin. His chest was perfectly chiseled, as if sculpted by Phidias himself, and his arms were strong and wrapped around me lovingly.

"Tenten," I could feel a tingly feeling at the top of my head and realized he was sniffing my hair. This had to mean something. Was Kiba right? Was everyone else aware of it but me?

"Neji…" I breathed in his scent and felt my insides melt. He smelled like a mixture of vanilla and clean laundry. My two favorite smells (= lol =) double smiley).

"You look nice with your hair wet…and out of your face…I can see more of you…" he chuckled. "I can _definitely_ see more of you." I blushed and nuzzled my cheek into him even deeper.

"So, um, about tonight…" I let my voice drown in his chest and he smiled against my scalp.

"Yeah," he whispered, stroking my cheek with the pad of his thumb, "Let's talk…" I smiled and grabbed his hand. Then, he pulled me into bed with him and he tucked me under the covers.

"So…I saw you looking at my dick…." _Oh my Kami…_

**Yeah, so, let's wrap up around there. Lol cliffhanger =) love pulling those on you ;) lol hope you liked it and please comment 3 **


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter Thirteen

_Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto does _

**I'm so sorry for those of you who were reading frostbite :( I wanted to post the Christmas finale on Christmas but I was too busy…. I'M SO SORRY ;( Yeah, well, comment and enjoy *sigh* **

Before I could think about what I was doing, I had lifted my fist to his head and struck. Yeah, sooner or later, I was going to get in big trouble. Maybe I should take some anger management classes.

Neji grunted and clutched his head in his hands, closing his eyes tightly. "Oh my Kami," I whispered loudly, my hands flying to my mouth in horror. "I did it again. Neji, are you okay? Oh my Kami, you don't hate me, do you? Are you alright? Neji?" I rested my hands on top of his, wrapping my fingers around his.

His eyes opened slowly and my breath hitched. He held my gaze and, slowly, he wrapped his fingers around mine so our fingers were laced together and brought them down to his chest. I watched in sheer fascination as he held them to his chest tightly and closed his eyes. Was he savoring my touch?

"Tenten," he whispered. My mouth went dry and I suddenly craved for some mouth wash. I nodded in response, even though his eyes were closed, and he lifted my hands to his nose and inhaled. My cheeks burned as he began to plant tiny kisses along the top of my hand and trail them down each of my fingers.

"N-Neji?" My heart skipped a beat, causing my breath to cease completely. I felt light headed. I needed some air. "I-uh…" my voice caught as he slipped one hand behind my head and lifted his eyes to meet mine.

"What are you doing?" I whispered, losing myself in his eyes. He shot me a heart melting smile-one that said he had a secret that he wouldn't let me know unless I figured it out myself. And I knew exactly how I was going to get it out of him.

"Do you want me to…?" he trailed off, searching my eyes for an answer instead. But I knew the question without him asking. And I had the answer. I leaned in, bracing my heart for rejection, just in case my guess at his unspoken words was wrong.

I hesitated, trying to read his expression, but found it useless. I was caught up in the moment and couldn't think. And I think he felt the same.

"Tenten," he leaned a few inches back, his eyes raking over my face. "Do you really want this?" he sounded distressed.

"Yes," I whispered before pulling him back into me and planting my lips firmly on his. I could feel his hesitation and my chest tightened. I wanted it but he didn't. I started to pull back but then he pressed into the kiss and my eyes flew open.

To my surprise, his hair was dry, and fanning out over his shoulders, framing his face and accentuating the tiny bit of facial hair he had. I smiled against his lips and closed my eyes to better savor the taste of his lips.

Neji was the first to pull away, so I pulled away, too, and opened my eyes to find him watching me closely. Suddenly, I was very self conscious. "What?" I demanded. After a moment more of staring, he shrugged, and rolled over so his back was facing me.

I gaped. Had I been imagining that kiss just a second ago, because it felt really real, and if it _was_ _real_, then he would not be giving me the cold shoulder right now. I poked him in the back, then the shoulder, and waited for him to turn back to face me.

"What the hell was that?" I demanded through clenched teeth.

"I was thinking." My eyebrow twitched.

"About what?" he pressed his lips together. "Well?" I pressed.

"I was thinking…" he said, inching closer so our bodies were pressing against each other. I blushed scarlet and pulled at my top, making sure my breasts weren't hanging out. You never know.

His hand made its way up to my cheek to tuck a strand of hair behind my ear. He leaned in closer, resting his lips against my ear lobe. His voice dropped below a whisper in a sexy, rough way. "I was thinking that…you and I both have secrets… There should be nothing between us. It would make it easier to decide." My brows furrowed.

What did that mean? Easier to decide what? The feel of his hot breath tickling my ear tore me from my thoughts and I was forced to inch back before I bursted out in fits of giggles.

"What do you mean?" I said, voice breaking. The giggling had begun. He shot me a sultry grin and closed the space between us that I had just put there. My face heated to a gazillion degrees and my heart sunk into my middle.

"I mean… I want to be sure of everything before I…" he rested his lips against my jaw line. "Give you my heart." My middle exploded and I had to suppress the moan that nearly flew out of my lips. Neji hadn't seemed to notice.

He nuzzled his cheek against my collarbone and I started to have an asthma attack. I literally .breathe.

I tried clearing my throat, swallowing, deep breathing exercises. Nothing worked.

"Tenten," he breathed against my chest. My middle began to heat again and I tried to respond the best I could. The best I could do was rest my hand on top of his head. But, hey, I guess he took that as a _yes, I'm listening _because he kept going with what he had to say.

"You smell good…like cookies…" The heat rose back to my face and I almost started laughing at the irony. I bit my bottom lip and glanced down at the man who I was pretty much holding in my arms.

Was he drunk? Or half asleep? Yeah, I think he was.

"So, Tenten, about earlier today…" My breath, or what I had left of it, hitched. I swallowed. I had to speak. I had to fess up.

"Right," I said, surprised to find my voice clear and a bit too loud. I lowered it to a whisper. "I, um, about that…"

"You know what, Tenten, you don't have to tell me if you don't want to." My eyes widened. Really? Had he really just said that?

"I-I don't?" He raised his head so our eyes could meet and I could feel my face flush even further.

"I know you don't feel comfortable talking about your feelings." He took my hands in his and held them to his chest like he had earlier. "But, listen, everyone breaks down. It really is okay to cry every now and then. And it's also okay to talk about it. You shouldn't be embarrassed or ashamed. Whatever the reason was, I'm sure it was a good one." I averted my gaze to focus on our hands clasped together at his chest.

His skin was so warm. I had always thought it to be cold, the way it was pale and all, but he was surprisingly warm and…consoling.

"Actually," I started, my eyes darting back up to meet his. My middle burned when I found his eyes where they weren't supposed to be. He was staring down at my chest. I inwardly sighed and forced the words out f my mouth.

"I…don't really know why I broke down, to be honest…" his eyes flew back up to meet mine and I averted my gaze.

"Tenten," he caressed my chin with his finger tips and nuzzled his nose against my cheek. Jeez, he was _way_ more affectionate at night. Maybe it was a guy thing.

My mind flashed back to Kiba and my conversation and I tensed. What if he and Honoka were doing the same thing Neji and I were right now? And what were Sasuke and Hinata doing at the moment?

My eyes darted toward the still and oddly silent bed on the other end of the room and I inwardly sighed. I guess it didn't really matter, what with Neji leaning into me like this. Wait, what?

I tore my gaze away from the bed on the other side of the room to Neji, who was pressing himself into my chest. "Neji…" I watched him uneasily. He looked up for a brief moment, our eyes locking and his body tensing in what I thought was realization.

"Oh, Tenten…" he sat up straight and inched away from me, running a hand through his long mane of russet. I pressed my lips together to stop the from quivering. When he left, he took all of the warmth with him. Especially the warmth in my middle. And I longed for it.  
>"Why are you being so close all of a sudden?" the words came out of my mouth before I could even process them. I bit my bottom lip. A sigh came from the man who had kissed me moments before.<p>

"Tenten…"he picked at his words like a frog being dissected. And it picked at my heart the same way. "I've been waiting to…" he made a grunting noise and then started over. "I really like you and…" he sighed again.

Moonlight tore through the dark room, eliminating his face. His pale skin glowed and his eyes glistened. After a moment of silence, I decided to break it. It was now or never, right?

"Neji?" he glanced up at me with despondent eyes. My heart tore. I wasn't exactly good at the whole make-you-feel-better thing, and I definitely wasn't good at the seduce-him-to-cheer-hm-up thing, either, but I pressed on.

I made my way closer to him, stooping low like a lion watching its prey, and stuck my rump up high in the air. He gave me an amused face and I grinned. My breasts began to spill out of my tank but I didn't care. This was my moment.

I hadn't realized up until now that I actually liked Neji. I mean, yeah, we flirted and played, and yeah, every time he left me I felt myself wanting more, but I thought that was just because I was lonely.

But now I knew better.

I wanted Neji and he wanted me. That was the way it was supposed to be. That was the way it was from the start.

"Neji," I purred, rubbing my head against his chest like a cat would. He smiled and reached down to untie my bun, causing russet locks to spill over my shoulders and spiral down to the mattress. His smile grew in sentiment.

He ran his fingers through my hair unconsciously, watching me with those big, milky eyes. I felt my breath hitch.

I ran my fingers up his chest seductively, taking slow, deliberate steps toward his neck where I stopped and wrapped my arms around him. "Don't be ashamed, Neji, I want you, too." I could hear his breathing grow ragged and decided to pull away and meet his gaze.

His eyes were closed. Was he…crying? No.

"Neji," I whispered, pulling at a strand of his hair and twirling it with my finger. Damn, his hair was _soft_. I blushed, suddenly feeling _very_ self conscious about my own hair. _Great, his hair is shinier, softer and longer than mine. _

I shook the thought out of my head and grabbed two more stands, beginning to braid his hair. He chuckled softly and laid a hand on mine. I stopped, holding his gaze.

"I want you…too…" I smiled and leaned into his chest.

"Boyfriend?" I murmured, my eye lids drooping. He chuckled softly in my ear.

"Girlfriend?" I smiled into his chest before drifting off into sleep.

**Sorry, I'd write more but my family is fighting and it isn't really pretty… So, um, comment please and hope you enjoyed :) **


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter Fourteen

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto does

**Yeah, so, I won't be able to write for the rest of the week so I'm going to go ahead and post this tonight. And I will do it-even if it takes me ALL night! I hope you guys who aren't reading or commenting on this are happy *crosses arms* -_- I work too hard for you guys…**

I awoke to the soft sound of breathing in my ear. When my eyes opened, I was hit with sunlight pouring in from the window and shining into my eyes. I shielded them with one of my hands and peered over to Neji who was sleeping soundly beside me. I blushed when I realized his arms were still wrapped around my form and wriggled in his grip.

_ If Hinata or Sasuke see this, I'll never hear the end of it. _I inwardly groaned. Then, the events from last night hit me and I stopped my struggling. _Neji and I are dating now. He asked me out and we kissed. He's allowed to hold me like this. _

With a reassuring breath, I curled up into a ball and tried to enjoy the last few moments I would have in Neji's arms before I was awakened. I closed my eyes and nuzzle my cheek into his chest. He was so warm. And his skin was so soft.

I played with the chest hair sprouting from his chest and had to stifle my laughter every time his nose wrinkled from my constant pulling and twirling. And then my gaze drifted toward the braid I had made in his hair and I couldn't take it. I burst out in fits of giggles and Neji's eyes fluttered open. The look on his face was priceless.

His eyes drifted down to me and he smiled in spite of himself. "Good morning, beautiful." He whispered, planting a kiss on my forehead. I blushed a rosy pink and kissed his chest in return. He let out a soft chuckle and started to stroke my hair.

Then, the bathroom door opened and out walked Hinata. Neji and I scrambled out of each other's arms as she made our way toward us. "Don't worry," she said nonchalantly, a glint of mischief in her eyes, "Sasuke and I already saw you." She jabbed her thumb over towards her bed where Sasuke sat, arms crossed and lips pulled into a frown.

I bit my tongue. "Why so glum, Sasuke-_kun_?" I teased.

"Hyuga," he muttered, rising to his feet, "If you dare do anything to my cousin, I swear I'll-"

"Yeah, yeah," the young prodigy said with the wave of his hand. Sasuke deadpanned. "Just remember, the same rules apply for _my_ cousin, too." The Uchiha let out a 'hn' and crossed his arms, turning away childishly.

Hinata rolled her eyes. "This is a bit too weird for me." I whispered to her. Neji shot me an annoyed look and I gave a sheepish laugh.

"Well, I'm off to breakfast." Sasuke said, grabbing Karou by the hand and dragging him to the door.

"Already?" I asked. Then I noticed that he, Hinata and Karou were all dressed and ready for the day. Even their bed was made. I pressed my lips together. "What time is it?" I mumbled, searching for a clock.

"It's eight thirty." Hinata answered.

"Yeah, and you would have been up in time for breakfast, too, if you guys had gone to bed like you were supposed to instead of making out last night." Sasuke cut in rudely. Hinata sighed audibly.

"Just get ready, you two." She said, taking Sasuke's free hand and leading him out of the room. Sasuke shot Neji and I the stink eye one last time before being pulled out of the room by his ear.

"Wow," I said, rubbing my head and stifling a yawn. Neji lifted his arms in the air and began to stretch out his limbs. "I can't believe Hinata and Sasuke heard us last night." A crimson blush stained my cheeks and I had to cover my face with a pillow to hide it from Neji.

"Don't worry about it," Neji said with the wave of his hand, "Sasuke's just jealous that he couldn't get as good a girl as you." I rolled my eyes.

"Hinata's plenty pretty. And she's really nice and funny and talented." I let my shoulders fall. "I'm just bland. Brown hair, brown eyes. I can't do anything special, I'm not funny and, well, let's face it." I turned to face Neji. "After hitting Kiba with that basketball, I think we can all agree I'm not very nice." I sighed and hugged my legs to my chest.

"Hey," Neji said softly, crawling over towards me. He brushed away some stray hairs and let his hands linger on my cheek. "You're extremely beautiful, Tenten. Who cares if you have brown hair and brown eyes? I happen to love brunettes and the shade of your eyes is the prettiest I've ever seen." He let his gaze drift off into the distance. "The way they shimmer in the light. They remind me of honey and caramel mixed together." I clasped my hands together and held them in my lap.

"And your hair is really shiny and soft." He added. "That's something to be proud of. And you know I _love_ long hair." He wiggled his eyebrows and I started laughing. He leaned back and let out a sigh.

"Not to mention you're really funny in your own, clumsy way, and who wants a nice girl?" he leaned in and pressed his lisp to my ear. "I like 'em mean and rough." He made a growling sound that tickled my ear and I couldn't help but laugh at that. He pulled away, looking pleased with himself.

"But I'm not talented…" I whispered, my smile fading. Neji shrugged and hopped off of the bed, leaving me alone and cold and utterly confused. "Hey," I shouted, pointing an accusing finger at him, "Where are your fancy words now, huh?" he shrugged again.

"I don't know you that well." He said. "So I don't know if you're talented or not. But I'll tell you one thing," he reached down into his suitcase and grabbed his toothpaste and toothbrush. "I can't wait to find out what they are." With that, he entered the bathroom and left me with nothing but his words that echoed through my mind.

Oh, and Kirimi, who was now waking up. I sighed and hoisted myself off of the bed and toward Kirimi's suitcase. And that's when I noticed Negi was gone. My brows furrowed. Had Sasuke and Hinata took him with them? I hadn't seen him leave…

I shook the thought out of my head and made my way toward Kirimi. Her golden locks spilled over her shoulder in messy knots as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes. "Good morning, Princess." I greeted with a bright smile. She smiled back and hopped out of bed.

"Hi." She said with the wave of her hand. I grinned. She was just too adorable.

"So, let's get you a quick shower so we don't miss breakfast." She nodded and I pulled out a yellow dress with a huge, pink sunflower centering it. Her eyes lit up and I pulled out some yellow socks and pink converse.

"Converse with dresses look so cute." I commented. She cocked her head to the side.

"Wow, you must be some sort of fashion expert." She said in awe. I laughed.

"Yeah…" I agreed before ushering her into the bathroom and closing the door behind us.

XXXXXXXXXX

Neji sat on the now made bed, dressed in faded jeans and a pastel green Hollister shirt. He had on black converse and his hair was tied back in a low ponytail. He had also made Kirimi's bed as well.

A scream tore through the silence that hung heavy in the air and Neji sprung to his feet. There was a splash and then the sound of someone gasping for breath. The Hyuga rushed to the bathroom door and then stopped just as he was getting ready to turn the knob.

"Should I open it?" he mused. "What if Kirimi…" he shook his head. "Be a man." He swung the door open and searched the room for Kirimi.

"They're so big," he heard someone say. It sounded like Kirimi. "How do you get them?" Neji's jaw tightened. What were they talking about?

He peered into the huge Jacuzzi filled to the top with hot bathwater and pink and white bubbles. He peered closer and noticed Kirimi sitting on top of Tenten who was also in the bath. "Tenten?" he asked tentatively.

He crept closer and then paled when he saw the scene play out clearly before him. Kirimi was sitting atop of a naked Tenten, caressing her breasts. "I want some, too! Does Neji like to suck on them? I sucked on my mom's when I was younger. They were really good. can I try yours?"

She bent down to press her lips to them when Neji scooped her out of the bathtub, earning a squeal of delight and fright. Delight from Kirimi and fright from Tenten. His face turned crimson as he looked down on the naked Tenten.

"N-Neji!" she stuttered. He nodded and placed Kirimi on the floor.

"What do you think you were doing?"He scolded Kirimi. Then, he glanced down at his shirt and groaned. "Shoot…" he pressed his lips together firmly. "What happened here?"

Kirimi rubbed her toe in circles on the floor, a guilty look on her face. "Well, Tenten was giving me a bath and I asked her to get in with me. And after I pleaded for like, forever, she finally got in and then I saw her boobies and wanted to taste some…" Neji blushed again and cast a fleeting glance toward Tenten.

_They are big…_he mused. Tenten sunk lower into the tub and Neji shook the thoughts away. "Let's get you dried off." He said, turning back to face Tenten. "I'll, um, let you, uh…" Tenten pressed her lips together and he nodded nervously. Then, the two left the bathroom with Kirimi wrapped in a towel and Neji in a soaked shirt.

XXXXXXXXX

"It was so mortifying." I groaned as the hockey puck came toward me. Hinata shook her head.

"You'd better not let Sasuke hear about that." She said as she swung her hockey stick and watched as the puck made its way toward Kiba. He scored a goal and Honoka jumped into his arms, planting dozens of kisses on his jaw and laughing gleefully. I sighed.

"And he kept looking at them, too." I complained. "What if he thought they were small?" Hinata snorted.

"Please, Neji doesn't judge like that." My eyes fell to my feet. "Besides, you're a size C, right?" I nodded. "Then there's nothing to worry about." She let out a laugh. "They're plenty big. Bigger than most. Plus you have a toned stomach." I twisted my lips to the side.

"I guess," I said bashfully. She nudged me in the side and shot me a playful grin. I returned it and we started shoving each other playfully. But our fight was interrupted when Sasuke shouted over to us.

"Hey, guys, we're going to play something else. Come join the group. We don't wanna' decide without you." Hinata and I shared an exasperated look before trudging toward the group.

I took my place beside Neji and shot him an awkward glance. He returned it with a smile but it was only halfhearted. I could tell he was nervous, too. "Look, Neji," I whispered, leaning closer to him. He shifted uncomfortably and I stopped in mid sentence. What was up with him?

My eyes widened. _Did he not like what he saw? Does he want to break up with me? Oh, shit, no. _I lowered my gaze to my feet as I've done so many times before and shifted away from him. Tears began to brim in my eyes and I fought to blink them away but it wouldn't work. They started to fall. I could sense Neji looking at me and turned my back to him and the rest of the group, making my way towards the bathrooms.

**Yeah, well, short but I have to go to bed. I'm really tired. Hope you guys choose to comment even though it sucked. Um, yeah…well, hope the next chapter is better. Thanks for reading…Hope you enjoyed…comment…meh, yeah, you know the drill. **


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter Fifteen

_Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto does_

**Hey guys :( I have a cold, probably strep, and science fair is due in… two weeks :O I haven't even STARTED and I have exams next week! I'm so cramming but I really wanna' write this chapter so...Hope you enjoy. Comment. **

I held my breath, back to the wall of the bathroom stall I was currently trapped in. After storming into here, my hormones officially out of whack, I had poured my heart and tears down the drain of the bathroom sink when I noticed someone had followed me in. So, as the door opened, I lunged into the closest stall I could find and locked the door.

"Tenten?" that was Sasuke's voice. Wait, Sasuke? In the girls bathroom? I pressed my lips together. _Should I open the door? I mean, it's not like he's a stranger or anything. And he certainly isn't Neji… _

"Tenten, I know you're in here. You left a trail of mascara on the side of the sink." My face reddened. So much for stealth mode. I sighed. I could see Sasuke's feet from under the stall door. He was waiting for me. I unlocked the door, letting it slowly swing open with a small creak.

His dark eyes were pooled with concern. My lips quivered as he entered the stall, squeezing in beside me. Then, he closed the door and locked it. Turning to me with a small, amused smile, he cocked his head, sending me a nonverbal message that said _what the hell is going on with you and Neji? _

I let out a shaky breath, taking a seat on the toilet and hanging my head in between my knees. "Not my first choice for a therapist office, but okay." He said jokingly. I lifted my head up from between my knees and shot him the best glare I could muster. He smiled sympathetically.

"What's going on?" he asked softly, crouching down to my level. His nose crinkled and he inhaled sharply. "Kami, the men's bathroom is so much nicer." I let out a small chuckle before sobering again.

"You and Neji are dating. You guys like each other, maybe even love each other, I don't know." He rested his hands on my wrists. "So why would you let something get between you like this? I mean, you just started dating like, what, this morning?" he gave me an exasperated look.

I sniffled. "You aren't going to like this." I murmured to my chest. He grabbed my chin and lifted it so our eyes met. I swallowed. He let his hand fall back to my wrist and I let out another shaky breath. "He saw me naked." I squeaked. His eyes hardened.

I waited. Sasuke looked as if he were going to start foaming at the mouth. "Sasuke?" I gripped his wrists in return and shook him gently. "Hey, you still with me?" he nodded briskly. I had to finish telling him the story or else he would storm out of there and rip Neji's balls off.

"Actually, it was an accident." He didn't waver. "I was in the bathtub with Kirimi. I accidentally fell in, to tell the truth," my face flushed, "And I let out a scream. Neji heard it and came in to help." Sasuke seemed to breathe again.

"And it was kind of awkward, as you can imagine." I let my face fall again, retreat back to my chest. Tears began to form in my eyes and I blocked Sasuke from view. "And now he's avoiding me." My voice cracked.

"Tenten," he said. I shook my head.

"And I don't think Neji really likes me. I don't think the feeling's mutual and I don't think I'll ever be able to get a boyfriend ever again because, well, because I'm not worth it to anyone and-"

"I've heard enough." I gasped. Sasuke was gripping me tightly. "Tenten, you _are_ worth it. You're beautiful, funny, talented and extremely loving and caring. Who wouldn't want to "waste" their time on you?" My chin began to tremble. Did he seriously mean all that? "And I know Neji likes you." He said. My brows furrowed and he lowered his head. "Loves you, I mean." My eyebrows shot up.

"What are you talking about?"

"Look," his head shot up and his grip became one of death. "Let's just clear this incident up, okay? You and Neji go apologize and let everything return back to normal." It took me a moment to process what he was saying, but then I nodded and he led me out of the stuffy and cramped bathroom. As we made our way toward the field, though, I couldn't help but wonder. Would things turn back to the way they were before last night? Or before this morning?

Lunch was nice. The chefs, who were miraculously there this time (Kakashi probably untied them and let them out of the closet he'd stuffed them in) and they made us Velveeta macaroni with grilled cheese and our choice of fruit. Healthy and satisfying. Oh, how I missed thee.

I snuck a glance toward Neji. After Sasuke and I had gotten to the field, we were informed that it was time for lunch, and that everyone else was already at the dining hall. We arrived late and, as expected, everyone stopped and stared when we entered.

Hinata had saved Sasuke a seat-completely anticipated. But so had Neji, and when I took my seat beside him, he actually leaned over and kissed my cheek in welcoming, whispering a _we need to talk _in my ear. It had sent shivers down my spine, but I nodded and started on my pasta.

Had that been a we're-gonna'-break-up we-need-to-talk or an I'm-sorry we-need-to-talk? He had kissed me, so it seemed unlikely that he would want to break up with me, but I still had my doubts. I mean, after what happened this morning? After seeing my body? Hell, I'd want to break up with me too. I closed my eyes and took another bite of my tapioca pudding (desert-compliments of the chefs).

I couldn't start crying again. Not in public. I mean, after_ that_ little episode and the one before, it was definite everyone thought she was a cry baby. There was a small poke to my side and I peered over. It was Honoka. She gave me a small, _everything okay?_ smile. I shook my head and finished off the rest of my pudding.

Then Kakashi announced it was time for evening events.

I held my arms high over my head, waving them frantically. "I'm open, I'm open!" I shouted.

"That's not how you play this game." Kirimi interjected, looking up in amusement.

"Oh yeah?" I said, hands on my hips. "Then how do you play?"

"For one thing," she said, lowering herself to the ground and picking up mu hockey stick, "You're not allowed to let go of this." I made an _oh _face and took it from her. I shrugged.

"Yeah, well, I'm so good I don't need this." I stuck my tongue out at her and she giggled in response, sending me an eye roll. I waggled my eyebrows and then shook my butt at her. She doubled over in laughter. I smiled in spite of myself, then caught Neji watching. I stopped, the heat rising to my cheeks. There was something in his eyes. And it wasn't lust. It was something more like a mixture of awe and compassion. It was weird and romantic and embarrassing all at the same time.

And then the puck hit my face.

I opened my eyes, realizing I wasn't in the clinic's office, but in the hotel room. And it was dark. How long had I been out? Had I even gone to the clinic? Had I missed dinner?

My stomach rumbled. Guess that was a yes.

I sat up in bed with the help of my elbows, glancing around the dark room. "Hungry?" I heard someone whisper beside me. I started. Peering in the dark, I could just barely make out Neji's face.

"Is it night time?" I whispered back. He nodded.

"Ten o'clock." I bit my bottom lip as my stomach sounded again. I deadpanned. Neji laughed and rose from the bed. He switched on a small lamp beside the bed and made his way into the foyer part of the room where the door was. There, he picked up a small tray and brought it over.

"Dinner in bed for my princess." He said, settling back in and setting the tray on my lap. I blushed. I was his princess. I guess that meant he wasn't going to break up with me. Or maybe he was just being nice since I'd gotten hurt?

I looked down. A bowl of rice stared back up at me with a side of salmon and green beans. A glass of water sat at edge of the tray and a small napkin was tucked beneath the bowl. "That was what was for dinner." He explained. I nodded.

"Looks good." Then my eyes widened. "Oh my gosh," I turned to face him. He was tucking himself under the covers, turning to face me while resting his cheek in his cupped hand. His eyebrows rose. "What happened to me, exactly?" He smiled.

"Well, as you were doing your little dance, the puck came flying at you and you were knocked out." He shook his head. "Seems everyone who plays sports with us gets hurt." My face flushed at the memory of me waggling my eyebrows and shaking my ass. Kami, how embarrassing.

"So, how bad is it?" I said, shying away from him. He shrugged, lifting his hand to my cheek and smoothing over my skin with the pad of his thumb.

"Not even a scratch." He said softly. Our eyes locked. I cleared my throat.

"Yeah…You think Kakashi will take points off for us getting hurt all the time?" I awkwardly intruded on our moment with the question, but was sort of relived when he chuckled and let his hand fall.

"I hope not. I really don't want to repeat this grade." I laughed.

"Me neither." I spooned some rice into my mouth and looked out the window. Perfect night complete with a full moon and dozens of stars. I turned back to Neji. "Hey, Neji?" He made a _hm? _sound and I proceeded. "What did you want to talk about?" his brows furrowed, as if he didn't know what I was talking about. Then his eyes widened and he nodded, sitting up.

He looked out the window, as if thinking what I was a moment ago. "You don't think I'm perverted, do you, Ten?" I blushed at the nickname.

"No…" I shoveled in some more rice and then gulped down some water. _Yeah, so lady-like. _"Why?"

He shifted to look at me, eyes searching mine. "What?" I asked. He reached for my hand. 

"After this morning, I felt like you thought I was a perv for…intruding on you." He looked away embarrassed. I quirked an eyebrow and took a bite of my salmon. Not bad, not bad.

"I don't think you're a perv, Neji." I said, squeezing his hand. He closed his eyes. "It was an accident. A big, embarrassing accident. But, hey, you're gonna' see me some time, right?" I laughed to lighten the mood. He smiled softly.

"Yeah," he whispered. "Hopefully." I smiled and finished off the rest of my dinner.

"Hey, um, I'm gonna' go brush my teeth, kay?" he nodded and I climbed over him to the other side of the bed. Then, as my feet hit the floor, I turned back around, planted a kiss to his cheek and whispered, "The only perv in this relationship is me." Then, I sauntered off to brush my teeth, the sound of his chuckling keeping me going.

**Okay, well, I have church tomorrow…So I have to go…Hope you enjoyed that, **_**short, short**_** chapter :D? Comment. **


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter Sixteen

_Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto does _

**Hey guys. Exams went okayish… Ok, just kidding, I don't think I did too well :( Dear Kami, please help me. I've recently adopted a new fetish: Poe. As in Edgar Allen Poe? Yeah, so, I might write a story based on how my imagination sees his death. Okay, onward to victory! **

When I awoke that morning, I found two things out of place. Very out of place. First of all, I was _not_ on the bed. Second of all, the person replacing me on my side of the bed was my very own flesh and blood-Sasuke.

An annoyed growl started deep inside my throat as I hoisted myself off the floor. "Sasuke!" I shouted, jerking him out of his sleep. His eyes fluttered open and a small cry escaped his lips, causing Neji, Hinata, Karin and Kankuro to all return from their sleep as well.

I hovered over him, arms crossed over my chest. "Tenten?" he peered up at me as if I was emitting a bright glow. I rolled my eyes.

"Why are you in my spot? And why the hell was I on the floor?" I questioned leaning in so our noses nearly touched. He rubbed the sleep form his eyes.

"Sorry, Tenten, but last night I woke up to find-" he shot Neji a cold glare-"_him _straddling you. I couldn't believe it. Sasuke was so aggravating sometimes. I mean, he and Hinata do things I don't even _want_ to comprehend and then he goes and gets in the middle of Neji and me? And when we had just made up, too.

I glared at him through sleep induced eyes. "So anyways, I crawled into bed with you two and slept in the middle of you guys. After I separated you-without waking either of you up, too." He beamed as if he had just established something extremely important.

"So how did I end up on the floor?" Kami, this was too much. I had barely even gotten any sleep, what with my whole face aching. And then, as if right on cue, a headache pounded its way into my head. I winced.

"I don't know," he said with the shrug of his shoulders, "I guess I might have pushed you off sometime during the night." He gave me a sheepish smile and I returned it with a blow to the head.

"Get out of my bed!" I shouted. He scrambled to his feet and made his way to Hinata who had lifted the blankets for him to settle in beside her. I let out a frustrated sigh.

"Well thanks for sharing with us." Karin said sourly, ducking her head under the covers. I glared daggers at her. It's not like she had to listen to us. She could have ignored us. I climbed into bed beside Neji and pulled the covers of my exposed form. I should have packed something more unrevealing.

"How's the face?" Neji leaned in to whisper in my ear. Shivers ran down my spine as his soft lips brushed against my skin and his warm breath caressed my cheek. I swallowed.

"F-fine. Just a minor headache." I muttered, turning on my side and closing my eyes. His hand caught mine and our fingers laced together.

"If you say so." He whispered before resting his head back on his own pillow, our hands entwined and resting against my hip. And just as my headache seemed to die down, there was a knock on the door. I growled.

"For the love of Kami!" Karin shouted from under the covers, her voice muffled. Hinata was the one to open the door. She seemed the least aggravated of us all, other than the ignorant and content Sasuke sleeping soundly in his bed. Where he should be. I narrowed my gaze on him. What an ass.

"Oh, thank you." Hinata's timid and (how she does it I have no idea) polite voice drifted back to us from the doorway. Then she emerged with a slightly embarrassed look on her face.

"Who was it?" Kankuro asked.

"Kakashi."

"I'll kill him." Karin muttered. They ignored her.

"What did he want?" Kankuro asked, sitting up in bed. Hinata took her place beside Sasuke and gently shook him awake as she spoke.

"He said it was going to be 96 degrees out today (hot for where I live so shut up) and that the pool was open." My eyes fluttered open.

"Sweet," Kankuro said, raising his fists in the air, "Who's up for a swim?"

"I don't know." I said. "Who's up for a sun burn? We have to keep the kids in mind." Kankuro rolled his eyes.

"That's what sun screen is for." He gave me a _no duh _look before swinging his legs over the edge of the bed and hopping out. Karin made a muffled grunting sound.

"I completely agree with Tenten." Hinata chimed in. "The kids should be in the shade on a day like this. Rays are powerful for children."

"They're powerful on anyone." Neji butted in. "You two just don't want to get in the water." Hinata and I blushed simultaneously.

"That's not true!" we said in unison. Sasuke and Neji's eyebrows rose.

"Well, I don't know about you sea slugs," Karin said while throwing the sheets off of herself and shifting to get up. "But I know I want to show off my body to the guys." She sent a wink Neji's way before sauntering off to the bathroom. The pit of my stomach flared.

"Damn bitch," I muttered. Neji squeezed my hand.

"She's just doing it to make you mad. You know she's jealous." The corner of my mouth lifted in a smirk.

"Yeah," I said, squeezing back.

XXXXXXXXXX

I squinted up at the sun. "Could you get my back?" Kirimi asks as I shift from rubbing lotion on her shoulders to rubbing it across her back. I look back over my shoulder to Neji and say:

"Hey, could you get my back?" he smiles softly as we share a small joke before taking the bottle of lotion from my hands and squirting a dime size into his hand. Hinata shot me a small smile from her spot under the beach umbrella, T shirt hanging from her body like a potato sack.

"Sorry about this morning." She said. "Sasuke can be a bit…" she pressed her lips together. Searched for the right words. "Protective." I nodded.

"Well, yeah, Neji's the same." I jabbed my thumb in his direction and could feel him glaring into my back. "Oh, stop, or you'll give me a sun burn." I can tell he's rolling his eyes. I smile. "So, Hinata," I say, turning the conversation back over to her. She raises her eyebrows.

"Why are you wearing that baggy shirt?" her face flushes. "Oh, come on, don't you want to show off to Sasuke? I mean, we all know you got some nice cha-chas." She shakes her head and leans in to whisper in my ear. I lean in too.

"No, it's not that. Sasuke's already seen them dozens of times." I swallow the puke rising in my throat. I did not need to know that. "It's just, like I said, Sasuke's protective. If he sees another guy looking he'll gouge their eyes out."

"'Cause that'll solve the problem." I retort. She just bites down on her lip. My face flushes as a thought comes to me all of a sudden. "Hey, Hinata? Do you think Sasuke will get mad at me for what I'm wearing? I mean, since he's protective of me too?" I whisper the last part. The last thing I needed was an upset Neji. But he didn't seem to notice being too involved with rubbing lotion across my back, which felt extremely good, by the way.

She shrugs. "I don't know. It is kind of revealing." I blush. Well, it was revealing, I had to admit. I was wearing a red two piece. The bottoms consisted of a regular bikini bottom with two tied strings on either side of my hips, little bells strung onto them. But the top… Well, hey, I had to defend myself. This was my mom's and, well, I had promised I would wear it because, well, it was one of the only ways I felt connected to her.

The top was a lighter shade of red, a string stretching across my chest and then two more strings criss crossing to tie around my neck. Except there was a huge, gaping hole where my breasts should have been covered up.

I looked down to survey myself. Maybe it was a bit revealing. And I really didn't want other guys sneaking peeks at them, especially with how protective Sasuke and Neji are (and how jealous Neji can get).

I let out a small breath, blowing my bangs out of my face. My hair was up in a messy bun, like usual, and my bags were just down. I hadn't felt like doing anything with my hair today. Not that I usually did anyway.

Neji stops rubbing my back and I turn around to face him. He hands me the bottle and spreads out on the beach towel beneath him. I set it aside. Then Sasuke approaches and takes Hinata's hand in his, hoisting her to her feet.

"Come on. We're going down to the shaved ice stand to get everyone some." He looked over Hinata's shoulder. "You two want anything?" I nodded but Neji shook his head. "What flavor?"

"Blue raspberry." He nods and walks off with Hinata, Karou and another kid by their sides. I look back to Neji. "We can share if you want." I suggest.

"That top is really revealing." He blurts out. My eyes widen a bit. I hadn't really expected that. I press my lips together as he scrutinized me under the hot sun. Was it hot out here, or what?

Okay, so maybe I was expecting it a little bit. But I hadn't expected him to say it so bluntly. I crossed my arms over my chest. "Don't ogle." I murmur to my feet. There's a long pause of silence and I'm just about to say something when I sense him shifting. My eyes flick up to meet his.

"I wasn't ogling." He says, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. "I'm not a pervert, remember?" I bite down on my lip. Hard. Something inside of me hurt. My heart sunk into my stomach and then rocketed back up to slam into my chest.

Maybe I had wanted him to ogle. Maybe I wanted him to notice. I didn't want a boyfriend that didn't appreciate my attributes. Isn't that what makes girls feel so special? When their boyfriend rakes them over like a piece of eye candy? I wouldn't know. I'm not experienced with boys.

"I remember." I whisper, forcing my tears to hide back beneath my eyelids. He shoots me an odd look but I shake my head and force a smile. My hand lifts up to caress his cheek. "You want to get in the pool?" he looks over at it as if it was a giant death trap (which I guess it was) and then shakes his head.

"Sorry, I don't do public pools." I nod. "But you can go on in, if you want. I'll watch." Then he leans in closer (if possible). "As long as you give me something entertaining to watch." My face heats to a degree I'm not sure is humanely possible and I inwardly smile. He had noticed. He knew I wanted it and, yeah, that was just what I needed.

I let out a small laugh. "I think I'll pass on that, Mr. Lecher." I wink and he throws an arm over my shoulders.

Sasuke and Hinata come back with the shaved ice, a throng of kids at their feet. "Would you knock it off? You're going to make me drop it." Sasuke says agitatedly. But to no avail. The kids keep pushing and bouncing. And then once bounces leads to one kid getting knocked in the chin which causes his head to slam into the cone of shaved ice in Sasuke's hand.

And then time begins to slow as everyone in the pool area stops to watch as the cone of purple ice falls into Gaara's lap. I suck in a breath. No one moves. The kids stop their pouncing and shoving to look over at Gaara, his face turning the shade of his hair.

And then he's on him.

Before anyone can blink, Gaara's got Sasuke in a choke hold. My hands fly up to my mouth as he twists him in an uncomfortable-looking way. Hinata screams and ushers the kids toward their 'parents'. Everyone takes shelter, files out of the pool and finds their 'family'. Kirimi rushes toward me, bringing Negi with her.

"Where are Karin and Kankuro?" I ask as Negi bursts into tears. I rub his back soothingly and pull him into my arms. Kirimi takes a seat in Neji's open lap.

"We don't know. They aren't here." I roll my eyes. Typical.

"What's going on?" Negi wails. I hush him and Neji pushes Kirimi into my lap, gently of course.

"I'm going to stop this." He says as he rises to his feet. My heart speeds up.

"No, Neji," I catch his wrist and hold on tight. "Gaara's menacing. What if he hurts you?" He shrugs me off, his eyes soft.

"I'm not going to let my best friend be decapitated." He says before bending down to kiss my forehead. And then he's off. Man, I hate that about guys. They always have to be the super hero. I glance over at Shikamaru, lying casually with three wailing kids at his sides.

If only they were all like him.

"Gaara, stop this! It was only ice-and an accident." Hinata pleads, trying to rip him off of the struggling Sasuke. I can imagine how embarrassing it must be for him. I mean, everyone's watching as Gaara kicks his ass and his girlfriend pleas his bail. And now Neji steps into view.

I hold my breath. My grip around Negi tightens and Kirimi grabs my arm urgently. I hear her breath hitch, too. "Gaara," he says. But the redheaded moron doesn't get the memo. He ignores him.

"Gaara, stop. It was just ice. You're embarrassing yourself." He licks his lips, eyes narrowing in on Neji. Then, he releases Sasuke and Hinata rushes to hold him. Except she doesn't get to because before she can, Sasuke pulls his fist back and into Gaara's jaw. Everyone gasps.

Hinata staggers backward, knees wobbling. I toss Negi off of my (again, _gently_) and rush to her side. "Hinata," I say, taking her by the arms. "Come on. This isn't safe. It's out of our hands." She doesn't nod. Doesn't respond. Just watches in horror as Gaara lands a blow to Sasuke's nose. I cringe.

"Come on," I tug on her, voice urgent, pleading. She begins to move and I guide her toward the umbrella with Kirimi and Negi. And just as I turn back around to watch, I see Neji fly back and into the pool.

"Neji!"

**Yeah, well, I'm not having a good week. Hope you guys enjoyed. This chapter sort of reminded me of that one chapter from Sweet Puppy Love. Good times, good times :) lol anyways, hope you enjoyed and comment ;))) **


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter Seventeen

_Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto does. _

**(A/N) Hey guys. So not in a good mood so I guess I'll just take my anger out on this poor, pathetic story… Hm, pathetic, wonder where I've heard that word used so many times… Hey, Alice, you can stop creeping now. **

_"Did you see what happened?" Who was talking? The voice sounded familiar somehow, but I just couldn't put my finger on it. "Yeah," said another voice. My mind itched to know what they were talking about. I turned my head slightly to the left. There were two girls in the corner of the room, whispering amongst themselves. _

_Why didn't they want me to hear?_

_ "Yeah, I heard he was getting permanent suspension." My brows furrowed. Were they talking about Gaara? Who were those girls, anyway? I had never seen them before in my entire life. And they sure weren't on the bus ride here. _

_ "Who knows what'll happen to him. I just fell so awful for that poor, little boy." The other said sadly. My heart slammed into my chest. Were they talking about Neji or Sasuke? They had to be mistaken, though, right? I mean, Neji and Sasuke were grown men. Well, er,_ teenagers_. _

_ "And what about that girl?"_

_ "Which girl?"_

_ "The one who jumped into the pool after Neji-kun!" My heart raced. "Don't tell me you forgot about that already?" Were they talking about me? Had I jumped in after him? Why couldn't they see me? _

_ I waved my hands back and forth, calling out. Their heads turned in my direction and a gasp escaped my lips. The girls had no faces. _

I shot up in my bed, hands searching for Neji. I was alone. I glanced around the room. No one was in my room, either. Just a nightstand and monitor. That's when I noticed I was in the nurse's office. 

_ What was up with my dream? _

Just then, the door opened and Hinata walked in, along with Sakura and Ino. The corner of my lips lifted in a smile. "Hey guys," I greeted. Ino and Sakura exchanged looks, stopping in their tracks. Hinata, not bothering to wait for them, rushed to my side and pressed a cool palm to my forehead. A small sigh escaped her lips.

"Someone's here to see you." She said softly. My throat tightened.

"Let him in." I said. "He shouldn't have to ask. He knows that." Hinata bit down on her bottom lip.

"Well, actually-" she didn't get to finish her sentence, though, because just as she started the door burst open and in rushed Kirimi. She jumped on my bed, throwing her arms around my neck and nuzzling her cheek against my chest. "Tenten!" she exclaimed. I was speechless.

Kirimi was the one who wanted to see me? But what about Neji?

I wrapped my arms around her awkwardly, pulling her closer to me and resting my chin atop her head. "How are you feeling?" her muffled voice drifted to my ears and I smiled half heartedly.

"I'm feeling fine, thank you." My eyes glided towards Hinata's. She looked restless. "Are you alright?" Kirimi lifted her head to meet my gaze.

"Yeah," she said with a wide grin. "I'm fine. Nothing happened to me. Everyone was worried about you, though, after you jumped into the pool and didn't come back up." My blood ran cold.

"Wait, what? What did I do? What happened?" my throat felt dry. Was I speaking right? I tried to clear it but didn't find much help in that. Sakura jumped on it, though, rifling through her bag and retrieving a water bottle. I took it gratefully and swigged down a few gulps.

"After Neji was pushed into the pool," Ino started excitedly, "You jumped in after him." Did I hear that right? I let my head hit the headboard behind me as I stared off into space. Was my dream…?

"And then neither of you came back up for a full minute." Hinata added. A full minute? I couldn't hold my breath that long! And Neji hated public pools. Did he have a spaz attack or something?

"So finally, Kakashi arrives and asks what's going on in that cheesy I-have-authority voice." Ino butts back in, sending Hinata an unappreciative glare. "And when we explained, Itachi took Gaara and Sasuke down to some room. He didn't look too happy with Sasuke."

"Yeah, but he looked really concerned when he heard about you." Sakura added.

"And then Kakashi dove into the pool to fish you and Neji out." Ino continued. Hinata took a seat on the side of my bed, setting Kirimi on her lap. Sakura took a seat in the guest char and Ino occupied herself by making wild gestures as she spoke.

"Finally, he dragged you and Neji out together-he is one hell of a strong man-" my eyebrows hot up at this. "And he started to perform CPR." The heat rose to my cheeks. Kakashi performed CPR on me? Oh, gross!

"But he only got to perform it on Neji since you were still breathing." Hinata added as a side note. I let out a breath.

"And then they took you and Neji into the infirmary to be checked on. You okay, by the way?" she took a step closer, her two pools of blue swelling with concern. I nodded curtly.

"Yeah, yeah, back up. Did you say I jumped in after Neji?" I reiterated. They all nodded in unison. "And Neji and I both nearly drowned?" another set of nods. "And Neji is in the room next to me?"

"He's down the hall." Sakura said. I swung my legs over the side of the bed and hopped out. Hinata jumped to her feet, Kirimi landing on the floor unexpectedly and nearly losing her balance. Sakura rose, too, and Ino blocked the door from any exit.

"Woah, hold up, hun, you cannot go roaming the halls like that." Sakura said, pushing on my shoulders so I was seated back on the bed.

"Yeah, Tenten, you have to rest. You nearly died. Give it some time." Hinata added.

"But I have to see Neji." I argued.

"And you'll see him. Just not right now." Sakura crossed her arms. Hinata lifted Kirimi into her arms and made her way for the door, motioning for Sakura to follow.

"You'll have plenty of time to see him once you rest." Ino said, opening the door for Hinata and Sakura to exit through. "Gives you time to think about what happened." She added before closing the door behind her. I lay back in my bed, pressing my cheek to the pillow.

"My dream… How did I know all of that happened? How did…?" My eyes widened a bit. The boy. Who was the little boy they were talking about in my dream? Could it have been…?

I turned in my sleep, stretching my arms over my head and tucking my pillow beneath my chin. Just then, the sound of a door creaking open caught my attention. I was up.

"Hinata?" I called softly, folding the covers back and slipping out of bed in silence. "Is that you?" the door to my room opened a crack and someone's head slipped through the small space, long locks of dark burgundy falling like a curtain.

I swallowed. "Tenten?" My heart rammed into my chest.

"Neji?" the door opened wider and the person slid in all of the way. Light flooded in from behind them, highlighting the outlines of their body. "Neji, is that you?" slowly, the door shut behind them and a moment later, the lights flicked on.

I squinted at the sudden intensity of the beam and lowered my gaze to the floor. They weren't wearing shoes. Suddenly, the feet began to move. Right foot, left foot, right foot, stop. My eyes drifted up to meet pools ivory. My lips curved into a smile and before I could stop myself, I had flung myself on him, letting my arms encircle his neck and my lips caress his.

"Neji," I murmured against his soft lips, the peach fuzz on his upper lip, suggesting he hadn't shaven in a couple of days, tickled my skin. I pulled away. "What happened today?" I said, searching his eyes for some clue.

He looked away for a moment, staring out the window at something unbeknownst to me. But I didn't turn to see what he was ogling, didn't shake him or press him into telling me what had happened. I just watched and waited patiently.

Finally, he took my hand in his and showed me to my bed, taking a seat and then helping me settle in on his lap. I pressed the back of my head against his chest as he untangled my hair with his spider-like fingers.

"Today…" he let out a dead beat breath, his free hand joining his other to play with my russet locks. "You didn't have to." I turned around to face him, my hair threading around my face and getting caught in my mouth as I spoke.

"Nonsense. I had to. You would have died."

"_You _would have died. If it weren't for Kakashi." He corrected.

"Yeah, okay, so what did happen exactly?" I crossed my arms over my chest and shifted in my spot so I could face him and still be in a comfortable position. He pulled a strand of hair from my mouth, eyes fixed on my lips as he spoke, quietly, like a scared child.

"When I was pushed in, you jumped in after me." He started. "I don't exactly know what happened after that. I was unconscious, after all."

Great. Of course I wasn't going to get any of my answers from him. He was unconscious the whole time.

"What happened to Gaara?" I ask. "Did he get expelled?" His eyes drifted from my lips to my eyes and held them there for a long moment. The silence stretched on.

"He's talking it out with Kakashi right now." I nodded. So my dream was…a vision of some sort? I mean, I've never had a past for mind reading, fortune telling and vision having, but this was really freaking me out. "But in all honesty," he adds after a moment, "I think he will be."

I stayed quiet. Gaara had seemed like such a good guy. Why would he turn like that? It just didn't make sense, didn't seem right. And then the kid came to my mind. "Hey, Neji," I started. He turned his gaze from the wall behind me where he had fixed it on back to me. "Was there a kid in the fight?" my mind flashed back to the dream. "No, a little boy, I mean." I corrected. He pressed his lips together.

"Why? Who told you that?" a shiver ran down my spine. So my dream had been right. Or, vision…

"Who was it?" I asked.

"Wait," he rested both palms on my shoulders. "Who told you?" I racked my brain for an excuse.

"Um, Hinata and Ino." I mumble. "They came in today. Oh, and Sakura, too." He narrowed his gaze on me, as if he didn't believe what I had said. I didn't blame him. I was just hoping he would move on and let it slide.

After a moment, he said: "Yeah… Sasuke told me today. There was a little boy who got pushed into the pool, too. Only…" my brows knit together.

"Only…." I prompted.

"Only, it happened after we were dragged out and taken to the infirmary. I was told there were only like seven people there to witness it." The heat rose to my cheeks. Neji shifted in his spot, taking my hands in his. "So how did Sakura, Ino and Hinata know that if they were at the infirmary by your side when it happened?" I swallowed. Tough shit, dealing with Neji. It was tough shit.

"Um…"

Three words I owe my life, soul and any possessions to.

Saved.

By.

Sasuke.

Neji and I both looked up as the door to my room opened. Sasuke stepped in. "Well, well, well, look at you two kids. "he said, leaning against the all, arms crossed over his chest. "I've got some news." He lifted himself off of the wall and carried himself closer to us.

"And you're not going to like it."

**Sorry guys, but I am soooo tired and I need to get a shower because *sigh* I have school tomorrow and I have to present my project… :/ Thanks for reading, comment and enjoy. **


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter Eighteen

_Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto does_

**Hey guys… So it turns out my "soulmate" was cheating and, um… Yeah, I'm really not feeling up to life right now, but I've got two really good friends that have helped… And next time I see that bastard's face, it'll be pounded in… Just saying… **

I shot up from my spot on the bed. My lips were moving wildly to some pattern of words, yet nothing was coming out. Sasuke's lip twitched in amusement. "Calm down," he said. I shut my mouth as Neji's hand tugged me back down to the bed.

"I have some good news and some bad news." He started.

"And I have some questions." I retorted. Neji shot me a pointed look to be quiet and I unwillingly complied.

"The good news is that little boy, whom I guess you already know about…?" he raised a suspicious eyebrow and I could feel him and Neji's skeptical eyes on me. Once again, though, I was saved by Sasuke who decided to let it slip and carry on. I owed him two of my cat lives; if I had any. "The boy isn't hurt. They took him in and gave him some oxygen. Bottom line, he's safe."

I breathed a sigh of relief.

"But here's the bad news. Gaara's being sent back home where he'll be tried for his actions." I leaned in, my eyes widening. "And I have to go with." He jabbed his thumb to his chest and let out a drained sigh.

"But you didn't do anything." I protested.

"I'm not the one being tried, Tenten." He explained. "I just have to go and testify. I'll be back in three days."

"Will you lose points?" I asked, as if that were the only thing that mattered here. Although, it kind of was since his school life was at stake here.

"I'm pretty sure that by now I'm broke." Sasuke said. I puckered my lips in a pout. That meant Hinata's grade was going to go down and she might not graduate.

"What about me?" Neji wanted to know. "Do I have to go too?"

Sasuke ran a hand through his hair. "That's just it. Kakashi and Itachi want to have a word with you right now. I was sent to tell you."

Neji squeezed my hand before letting it slip from his grasp and rising to his feet. "Let's go." He said.

"Neji," I said, hopping off of the bed. I raised my hand in a gesture to stop him in some way, and he grasped my wrist, pulling me into his chest and wrapping his warms around me.

"I'll be back as soon as we're finished." He whispered before planting a kiss at the crown of my head.

I closed my eyes and let myself lean into his embrace, my cheek caressing his chest comfortably. "I'll be waiting." I said. And then he released me and the two of them were gone. I stared at the closed door in front of me for a while longer before climbing back into bed and falling into a restful sleep.

XXXXX

I opened my eyes to the sound of someone calling my name. There was a hand shaking my arm gently and I let my eyes follow the trail from their hand, up the length of their arm and to their face.

"Neji?"

A smile graced my lips. "You came back." I said. Neji returned my smile and helped me to sit up.

"How are you feeling?" he asked.

"I'm feeling up to breakfast." I said. "And not hospital food."

There was a stretch of silence and then he said:

"Then how about we grab a bite?" I nodded and climbed out of bed, taking a moment to stretch my arms above my head.

"So Neji…?" I asked as we made our way down the hall and out of the door. The nurse looked up from her seat at her desk and raised her eyebrows. I lifted my hand in a wave and shot her a reassuring smile. She nodded and smiled back, going back to her work.

"What did they say? Are you going with Sasuke to testify?"

"Yeah," he said. "I'm going with him." My eyes fell to my feet.

"What are you going to say?" I wanted to know.

"To who?"

My head shot up and I frowned at him. "What are you going to say in court, dumbass? You aren't going to let Gaara go to jail, are you?"

Neji licked his lips. He seemed to be mulling it over, even though we both already knew the answer. He was just putting on a show. "Neji!" I demanded. "How could you do that? Gaara just overreacted a little. He didn't kill anyone."

"He hurt you." He said tediously.

"No," I said. "I'm fine. Everyone's fine." My voice took on a desperate tone and I inwardly winced at how pathetic I sounded trying to protect this guy that I barely knew. "Just forgive and forget."

"I can't forgive anyone who hurts you." His face was scrunched up as if someone had just insulted him, and suddenly, he was the one who looked desperate. He stopped walking, and I was quick to follow.

"Neji…?" I peered into his eyes curiously. "Is something bothering you?"

He averted his gaze. "I just…don't want to lose you." He said. My eyes widened. "When you jumped in after me; when I heard that you had jumped in and hadn't come up for a minute, I thought you had died. I was so scared that I had lost you."

I shook my head. "You'll never lo-"

I was cut off by his arms encircling me and once again pulling me into his chest. "How could you be so stupid?" he spat.

I flinched.

"You could have died. Why would you do that? Don't you know how much I-"

I lifted my heels from the ground and stood on my tip toes, letting my lips caress his in a way more magical than we had ever kissed before. And this time I was the one to surprise him. I cracked one eye open to find Neji's eyes closed; a peaceful expression played on his face and for the first time since I'd met him, his protective wall around his heart collapsed and let me in.

I closed my eye and leaned into the kiss, licking his bottom lip ever so slightly before pulling back. His eyes fluttered open in a mixture of surprise and disappointment.

"You tease," he growled playfully while slipping his arms around my waist and pulling me to him. He rested his chin atop of my head and, in a moment of accomplishment, I let myself breathe and enjoy his embrace.

Because this hug wasn't one symbolizing goodbye; it was symbolizing something new.

He accepted me and I was now on the other side of his wall. The famous wall that had never let anyone in until now.

"I won't be long." He whispered into my hair.

And that's when I remembered what we were fighting about in the first place.

Gaara.

"Neji," I sighed, pulling away from him so I could see his face. It seemed as if he had completely forgotten about Gaara, but I knew better. "Please don't do this. Don't ruin his future because of one mess up."

He released me slowly, letting his hands fall to his sides in defeat. "Tenten," he started, running a hand through his mane.

"No," I stopped him. "Wouldn't you want a second chance?" When he didn't answer, I decided to just compromise. "Then how about you think about it on your way there? For me…?"

His eyes locked with mine and a small, weary smile etched onto his lips. "Ok," he complied. "I'll think about it."

XXXXXX

"Hey,"

I looked up from my spot on the bleachers that I had been occupying by myself just a moment before. We had agreed to try basketball again, and this time I had opted to sitting out for the sake of Kiba and everyone else's faces.

Hinata stared down at me with two pools of fret. I nodded in acknowledgment and patted the seat beside me. We watched our groups as they ganged up on Kiba and Honoka and chased the ball from them.

"So what's got you down?" I questioned. Hinata didn't seem surprised that I had asked, nor upset that I was harrying her about it.

"Sasuke's leaving for a while." She responded glumly.

"I know," I said. "Neji's leaving too, and to be honest, I'm kind of worried about it." Hinata turned to me suddenly, her eyes wide.

"I know," she said, nodding enthusiastically. "I'm worried, too." She turned back to the game, crossing her elbows over her knees and leaned forward. "I'm afraid Sasuke and Gaara might get into a fight in court and then they'll both have to go to jail."

I sweat dropped.

"Yeah," I said sheepishly. "But what I'm worried about is what they'll say to the judge." Hinata's eyebrows merged in question, and I elaborated. "What I mean is, Neji wants to put Gaara behind bars for hurting me, but I don't think that's such a great idea."

"But why?" Hinata said, her voice raising slightly. She looked astonished at what I'd said. "I mean…" she blushed and sank into the bleachers in embarrassment. "Don't you want him to pay for what he did to you?"

I shook my head. "Everyone deserves a second chance." My eyes drifted down to Neji who was stealing the ball from Sasuke and tossing it towards Kirimi. She caught it with both hands and shot for the hoop. I held my breath, as did everyone else, as it sank right through and bounced to the ground below, hitting Kiba in the ass.

I chuckled as Neji lifted her up and ran around in circles as Kirimi spread her arms out as if she were an airplane, a huge smile plastered onto her face. Kiba seemed to be complaining about his rear end, and Honoka decided to do something about it by rubbing the pain away.

My eyebrows shot up as Kiba's face reddened to a near crimson shade. That was so unlike her.

And then my eyes drifted back to Neji slowly, only to find him watching me with a small, discreet smile on his face. The heat rose to my cheeks and I averted my gaze.

"Hey, Ten-chan!"

Hinata giggled and rose from her seat. "Looks like Kirimi needs you." I watched as she started down the steps and then, peculiarly, as she stopped. "And who knows what will happen tomorrow." My eyes widened the tiniest bit at the hushed words that left her lips next. "I'll be wishing Gaara the best of luck."

XXXX

"Ten-chan…?" I looked over my shoulder to Kirimi, who was sitting on the bed she shared with the other two kids, kicking her legs back and forth to an unheard rhythm. I rasied my eyebrows in question, prompting her to continue. But she didn't.

"Yes…?" I said, my voice catching at the end. She looked up from the bouncing of her feet and my heart slammed into my chest painfully at the look on her face; the tears pooling in her eyes. "Sweets…? What's wrong?" I knelt beside her and pressed one of my hands to her knee.

"I…" she sniffed. "I'm so scared. About what happened with Neji and you at the pool…" she rubbed her eyes with the sides of her hands and I could see red blotched beginning to form from the tears.

"Baby," I said. "That's never going to happen again. Gaara just…had a _problem_…something happened and-trust me, it will never happen again." I nodded reassuringly and added a smile for more assertion.

"But what if something were to happen to you guys?" she burst.

I jerked back in surprise, then looked over my shoulder towards the bathroom door to make sure Neji hadn't come out yet. Sasuke and Hinata had taken their kid out to grab some snacks before bed and Negi was with Karin and Kankuro, wherever they were.

"Honey, what are you talking about? Nothing will happen to us. Neji's strong, and he'll protect all of us. You're safe and nothing's going to get you."

"I'm not worried about me," she said grumpily. "I'm worried about you and Neji-wedgies."

I chewed on my bottom lip. Why was she so worried about us?

"What if something happens to you guys and no one's here to take care of me? What if I'm all alone again?"

My breath caught in my throat. I hadn't heard about Kirimi's past; in fact, none of us were told our children's stories about how they had gotten into the foster home, but I was getting a really strong vibe that she had been abandoned by her "parents."

"Kirimi," I whispered. Tears filled my eyes to match hers and we sat there for a moment, both of us sniffling and trying to contain our tears.

And then I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her into my chest protectively. Kirimi whimpered and her whole body began to shake, causing mine to shake as well.

"I…" I shut my eyes and strained to hear her muffled voice. "I want him in jail…For what he did to you."

**Yeah… So I hope that was ok? Sheesh, sorry that took so long -_- I have no excuse for making you guys wait for so long. GOMEN! Anyways, comment, and I'll try to post soon. I have two other stories to work on, though… -_- **


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter Nineteen

_Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto does_

**Hey guys =) So I hope you all like my last chapter and if any of you are KibaHina fans, then check out my newest story, Let it Rock! Hope you enjoy this chappie too, and comment ^.^ **

When I was a child, my mother used to take me out for frozen yogurt after she had finished her errands in the city. Since we lived in the country, it was rare that I got to visit the city and shop and sightsee. But whenever it came to work, mom was always on top, and she was willing to get her work done no matter what. Even if it meant sacrificing her own child's happiness.

Sometimes it would be late at night, and she would wake me up and drag me out of bed. I'd have to take a short nap in the car on our ride into Tokyo, and then stagger through the dim lit streets as mom browsed for supplies and talked with clients.

But soon, my grouchiness would fade and after everything was over, mom would take me out for frozen yogurt, no matter how late it was. So that always sort of made up for it. I would always take a seat on one of the stools by the bar, eager to watch them make my yogurt and top it with caramel coated soy beans.

And ever since then, I've wanted to be a pastry chef. But mom stopped taking me out for frozen yogurt after some time; once I "got too old for it", as she would say. And then she would head off on her errands and leave me at home to take care of the chores and do my homework.

After that I started to despise my mother for not taking me out anymore. I never got to go into Tokyo again, and I hated not being able to have frozen yogurt. After hating her for so long, I started to realize that I never did like her in the first pace, and she never liked me. Mothers don't buy their children's love with frozen dairy desserts, and children shouldn't comply to such unaffectionate companionship just for a treat.

Then we stopped talking, and I actually enjoyed the time alone when my mother left the house. I would finish my chores, do my homework and then cook myself dinner while watching all of the anime I wanted; only did I ever stop to go to bed. I did pretty well in school, too, and as long as I kept my grades up, mom had no reason to talk to me. Life went on, and even though I had no siblings and no father, it didn't really matter, because I felt that if I did have more people in my life, there would only be more people to ignore me.

I started going to my cousin's house over the summer and after spending time with Sasuke and Itachi, I felt like I did have some people in my life that cared for me. They helped me to begin to accept my mother again and let her into my life.

But I never got the chance.

Mom died shortly after my heart began to open up to her. She died on one of her errands.

I had to move back in with my father who had left my mom a while before for someone else. My stepmother was a wench, and my assumptions about my father being in my life proved to be right. He ignored me more than ever. I hated Mae, but found Honoka a great companion, so that was how I coped.

And I still got to see Sasuke and Itachi every once in a while.

I had been abandoned by my father, who had also abandoned my mother; which then led to her abandoning me. I knew exactly how Kirimi felt; and watching her cry over it, listening to her confess her loneliness and fears made the pain come back tenfold.

I didn't sleep well that night.

XXXXX

Sleeping was somewhat like taking a bath in ice water.

It was impossible.

I had tossed and turned all night, resulting in Neji flicking me in the forehead so many times that my head began to throb, and it was all I could do to stay still for the sake of my face. Eventually, though (maybe around three in the morning) I found myself on the verge of sleep, and I took that chance to close my eyes and compel myself into unconsciousness.

And I really payed for it when I woke up.

"So how about we play softball today? We can head over to the field and see if there are any other teams playing and challenge them. But if not, we can just ask for Kiba's sorry ass, and if he wants to be beaten again."

I peered over at Sasuke through sore, blotchy eyes. Hinata slapped him upside the head for his use of language in front of the kids. "You aren't even going to be here." She had to remind him. "So you don't get a say in what we do today."

Neji came up beside me and took a seat on the bed. "Hey," he greeted, planting a kiss to my temple. I winced as a migraine pounded its way through my head. "Something up? You couldn't sleep last night, I presume, with all of that tossing. What's bothering you?"

I shook my head. "I just couldn't sleep." I lied. "Maybe insomnia." He looked doubtful but let it slide for the time being.

"How about we go catch some breakfast and then you can see me off?" I rolled my eyes.

"Don't flatter yourself. Like I don't have anything better to do than to see you off." Neji quirked an eyebrow.

"Well fine, if my leaving doesn't have too much an impact on you, I guess you'll have no trouble managing Kirimi and Negi?"

"Negi isn't even my child." I pointed out, ignoring his challenge as it was already hard enough just _thinking_ about Neji leaving me. "But I guess I'll have to take care of him, anyway, because Karin and Kankuro are too drunk and oblivious."

"How do they even get the beer if we aren't allowed off of campus?" Hinata wondered aloud.

"But remember this," Sasuke chimed in. "If they fail, which they will, we won't have to deal with them next year." Neji, Hinata and I all murmured in agreement as Sasuke lifted himself from the floor. "But look guys, we need to get some breakfast before Kakashi leaves to court without us."

"He wouldn't do that." I argued just for the sake of conversation. "What would he say without you?" I grinned when Sasuke shot me an annoyed look. "Come on Kirimi," I said with a laugh. I looked around the room bemusedly. "Where are the kids?"

"In the bathroom." Neji said as he fastened his tie. I watched him as he fumbled hopelessly with the silk accessory. You'd think someone as formal and etiquette-trained as him would know how to tie a tie.

I rolled my eyes and reached for the cloth, clasping his hands in mine for the briefest of moments before he let them fall to his side and I took over. "So, what are they doing in there all alone?" I asked softly. My eyes stayed fixed on the cloth as I tucked and tied it expertly, but I could sense Neji's eyes on me as I worked.

"Brushing their teeth…?" he answered dazedly. My eyes drifted up to find him gazing down at me tenderly, his eyes clouded over with the slightest hint of adoration. I let my hands fall from his professionally-done tie, our eyes staying locked until Sasuke's annoyed clearing of his throat interrupted us.

"Breakfast," I murmured, letting my gaze fall to the floor. "We need to have breakfast."

"I'll grab the kids." Hinata muttered as she hurried to the bathroom and swung open the door. "Alright, breakfast time; everyone out!" Kirimi, Negi and Karou filed out of the bathroom looking flustered.

"What were they doing in there, really?" Hinata wondered aloud.

XXXXX

The sun reflected off of the silver Mercedes and stung my already sore eyes. Kakashi rounded the corner of the car and leaned in through the window to speak with the driver. Itachi and Sasuke tossed the baggage into the trunk, all the while carrying on light conversation about the project and how it had been going so far, aside from the whole Gaara-tried-to-kill-us thing.

I clasped my hands in front of me nervously as Kirimi and my conversation from last night thundered through my mind endlessly. I wanted Neji to give Gaara a second chance because everyone deserves a second chance, but what Kirimi had said had really shocked me.

She had been abandoned, just as I had, and she was worried she would be abandoned again, as long as Gaara or anyone else with a killing instinct came near me or Neji. I chewed at my lower lip. If Neji listened to me and Kirimi found out, would she be upset? Or what if Neji didn't listen to me, the obdurate bastard, and decided to try him guilty? That wouldn't be fair, and we both knew it.

But it was also Sasuke's decision as well, which reminded me; why hadn't I been invited along to the court meeting? I had been pushed in, too. Life really wasn't fair.

It was sexist.

"Neji," I started. "I'm going to-"

Neji's arms encircled me the moment I started speaking, as if he had been waiting for me to say something just so he could interrupt me with another one of his breathtaking hugs.

And it was one of those _good_ kinds of breathtaking.

"I'll miss you too." He whispered.

"Actually, I was going to say that I was going to be fine without you." I teased. He squeezed me tighter in response, and I giggled childishly. It was amusing at how much of an impact my words had on him. And it was kind of touching, too.

"Then in that case, I take back what I just said." He responded immaturely.

I grinned.

"Ok, kids, let's hustle. We don't want to be late." Kakashi said as he ducked into the passenger seat.

"Hey, I thought we agreed that I got the passenger seat?" Itachi whined.

"You booze you lose." Kakashi said with a wink.

"What the hell?" Itachi roared.

Yeah. Definitely gay.

Neji grabbed my hand and pulled me in for one last hug before climbing into the car after Sasuke. Hinata and I stood in their dust with Kirimi and Karou, watching after them until we could see them no longer. Hinata turned to me then and said:

"Softball?"

I grinned. "You know it."

XXXX

"The pitcher's scared; yeah, yeah, yeah! The pitcher's scared; yeah, yeah, yeah!"

I groaned and sunk into my seat under one of the pavilions. Kiba and Honoka just happened to be here when Hinata and I arrived, which meant that we were to play them again. And you know what that meant.

I had to sit out.

I swear he can be such a baby sometimes.

But I had to admit; Kirimi was really good at baseball. It might have been that chant she'd been repeating over and over every time she went up to bat, but either way, she had gotten Hinata and my team a bunch of brownie points.

She swung the bat for the thirteenth time that day, and everyone's heads tilted to watch the ball soar through the air and land in the bushes three yards away. I rocketed from my seat with my arms raised, cheering enthusiastically as my little tiger sped her way through all three bases.

That sounded too wrong.

Kiba jogged into the bushes and dug around a bit before a yelp pierced the comfortable silence. Hinata and Honoka jumped simultaneously as Kiba staggered backwards, both hands over his eyes. I wrinkled my nose in distaste as realization hit me. The yellow streaks across his shirt said it all.

"Grab the kids," I shouted, racing across the field and lifting Kirimi from the ground; tossing her over my shoulder and retreating back to the pavilion with her giggling all the while. Honoka rushed over to Kiba's side as Hinata grabbed the other two kids.

And I thought Kiba was an animal person.

"Looks like that skunk wasn't a Kiba person," I muttered, setting Kirimi down beside me. She beamed up at me.

"Wow Tennie-chan; you're fast as a ninja!" she praised.

I shook my head modestly. "Nah, no way I could ever be a ninja."

XXXX

"You liking that chicken?" I asked Honoka sardonically. She looked up from her mangled chicken breast and blushed sheepishly.

"Sorry," she said, setting down her fork. "I just can't stop thinking about Kiba. Why do all of these bad things keep happening to him?"

I had to bite my tongue from laughing.

"I know," I agreed eagerly. "I didn't even play this time!" Honoka shook her head, the corner of her lip lifting up in a small smirk.

"Maybe we shouldn't play against you guys anymore."

We shared a smile and I shrugged. "Bad omens and shit," I said while spooning some corn into my mouth. "I guess Kiba's lust driven mind has gotten him somewhere where Karma visits often, neh?"

Honoka's cheeks reddened considerably. "Tenten," she scolded. "Not at the table."

"You're telling me." I retorted. "Most people don't massacre poor animals at the dinner table."

**So, I have a lot of homework, but I decided to write this instead. And I have until Friday to raise my two Bs and one C to As -_- This will be so much fun… COMMENT AND ENJOY MY SOTRIES ^(.)^ **


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter Twenty

_Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto does_

**Hi guys :) I have a goal: GET ABS BEFORE SUMMER! And I will conquer XD So anyways, I've been reading a bunch of Nejiten fics and in every one of them, the way Neji and Tenten act are the same… and the way they act in my stories are completely OOC (or is it OCC?) So… I can't really change their personalities in the middle but sorry for that. **

_Dream Sequence:_

_My__ eyes grazed the area around me, seeking one thing in particular but finding something else entirely. A thick haze of fog hugged the nearby trees in the far distance as they swayed to an unheard rhythm. I tilted my head back and gazed up at the sky, which resembled a large puzzle board as the sinister looking clouds peeked through the miasma. _

_I fixed my eyes back on the trees. They were swaying more forcefully, and this time there was a beat. My eyebrows met in a confused flurry of thoughts as I strained to hear the beat, but no tunes or notes could reach my ears. I could only _feel _the beat; and I felt it through my body, not the ground nor the wind. _

_Then my eyes caught something from behind the trees. There was a shadowed figure watching me timidly; their hand tucked behind a branch as they peered around the foliage. My heartbeat sped up, along with the wind. My mind was racing into oblivion at all of the thoughts circulating through my mind._

Was it Neji?

_I decided to take a chance, and called his name. The person crept back behind the tree at the sound of my voice. _

_I frowned. _

_Suddenly, the wind picked up again and the trees shook forcefully, revealing a small child with golden hair that was pulled into a loose braid. Her jacket, which I could now see was pink, fluttered helplessly in the wind, providing no protection for her skin. _

_My eyes widened. _

"_Kirimi…?" _

_I blanched as she took a step forward to reveal herself fully. Her azure eyes flickered with fear as the wind breathed a dynamic sigh in Kirimi's direction. The breath caught in my throat as her arms lifted in a gesture for help. And a moment too soon, the wind hoisted her into the air and with a sharp, piercing scream that left me breathless and clinging to the ground for support, she was gone. _

_End Dream Sequence _

I gasped at the cool touch of skin against my arm. My eyes fluttered open and were met by a pair of lavender orbs. Hinata watched me anxiously, as if I were about to burst into a million flames in her very presence. My body was caked in sweat and I was cold with shivery tingles running down my spine, despite the fact that my skin was on fire.

"Hinata," I breathed. She poked her fingers together shyly and glanced over her shoulder, as if I had woken the kids.

"Were you having a bad dream?" she whispered, turning back to face me.

I ran a trembling hand through my dampened hair and pressed my lips together, opting for silence instead of answering her question. After a moment of Hinata stealing glances my way awkwardly, once she had realized I hadn't wanted to answer the question; she asked:

"Can I sleep with you tonight?"

I made a grunting sound in surprise to her query and gave her an incredulous look. "You want to do what?" I asked. My eyes darted to the alarm clock on the nightstand that read two fifteen. I glanced back at her, my brows furrowing slightly. Hinata didn't answer, so I patted the spot beside me and lifted the covers so she could crawl in.

We laid beside each other in silence before Hinata spoke. "It's so lonely without them here, isn't it?"

My thoughts drifted back to my dream. I was hoping so much that the figure behind the trees would be Neji, most likely because I missed him so much, but it hadn't been. It had been Kirimi, and she had gotten hurt because I couldn't protect her.

Just like she feared.

I glanced towards Kirimi, but could only make out a lump in the darkness. "Yeah," I whispered. "It's cold, too." Hinata laughed softly.

The wind blew against the side of the condo and the whole room seemed to be engulfed in its harmonious whistling.

Wind.

"Hinata…?"

"Yeah?"

"Are there a lot of wind storms around here?"

Hinata shifted beside me, and I was guessing she was staring at me oddly, but I didn't meet her gaze. It was a sudden and kind of stupid question. Just because I had a weird dream, it didn't mean that there would be a wind storm. But either way, I had to know because my heart and mind were restless with the thought of not being able to protect Kirimi. I had promised her that Neji would protect us, but Neji wasn't here; and if there did happen to be a storm or some other kind of accident like before, I didn't have the heart to believe I would be able to protect her.

"Well, this is a tropical area." Her voice tore me from my thoughts and my heartbeat sped up at the sudden feel of her breath on my cheek. "It's likely that there would be a storm of some sort… Maybe a tsunami, even."

My eyes widened and this time I did meet her gaze. She rolled over onto her back and stared up at the ceiling, her bangs fanning out over her forehead in a way that made her look like a five year old girl, her hair damp and unruly from the summer heat.

"But Kakashi wouldn't have sent us here without checking the weather reports first." She said. "I mean, there are children's lives on the line. He wouldn't be that dense."

Her words eased my mind for the time being, and I breathed a sigh of relief. "Why do you ask?"

I shook my head. "No reason,"

XXXX

The next time I opened my eyes, it was just breaking dawn outside and there was a filtering of bronze light through the window shades. I glanced around the room, starting with Hinata who was sprawled out over the bed, her legs entangled in the sheets because it had gotten too hot over the night for their warmth. I moved to Kirimi next, seeing as how she was curled up in a ball facing Karou; his arms lolled over her side and to the very left, Negi was sleeping upside down near Karou's feet.

I wrinkled my nose.

My eyes moved, then, to Karin and Kankuro who were, surprisingly, sleeping cuddled together despite their differences (and the heat.) Then my eyes landed on Hinata and Sasuke's empty bed and my heart sunk into my stomach. The reminder of how lonely Hinata was without Sasuke and I without Neji pounded on my heart like a hammer.

There was a stirring from across the room and I watched as Karin opened one eyelid discreetly, as if she were planning to sneak out unseen. I watched as she surveyed the room with one, cat like eye before it landed on me. She nearly jumped out of her skin when she saw I was watching her, and it was all I could do not to burst into fits of giggles. So instead, I smirked.

"Surprised?" I asked, stretching my arms over my head nonchalantly. She didn't say a word, didn't even glower, which was very un-Karin like. "Something wrong?"

"Tenten," she gently slipped out of Kankuro's embrace and replaced her bodily warmth with a pillow, which Kankuro took and snuggled his face into, muttering something about soft boobs. I watched her curiously as she took a hair band from her wrist and pulled her uncombed, magenta hair into a messy bun. Then she lifted her knees to her chest and wrapped her arms around her legs like a little girl; resting her chin atop her knees and watching me.

"Yeah…?" I said uneasily, after a moment of being stared at. She rubbed her lips together and let out a small breath.

"I…feel like a dick."

Her words took me by surprise, so I said the first thing that came to mind. "Don't we all when we wake up?" My cheeks reddened in embarrassment as my mind became less nebulous, and I realized how idiotic I sounded. "I mean…"

"No," she interrupted. I jerked back. The look in her eyes was sincere and sort of poignant. "I mean… I feel awful about everything I've done to you."

I let out a sheepish laugh. "What have you done to me, really?" I said lightly. "Other than embarrassing me and ticking me off, there really isn't much."

Karin's eyes fell to her feet, and she began to pick at the chipping, red polish coating her nails. I couldn't understand why she was apologizing, and I was having a pretty hard time with coping with emotional, nicer Karin.

"Karin, I don't understand. Why are you being so nice? Why are you apologizing?"

"Because…" she bit her lip. "Because I feel terrible about being such a bitch, and I'm tired of being mean and cranky and controlling." She sighed and reached for her glasses which rested on her nightstand. After settling them on the brink of her nose, she continued. "Kankuro made me realize that I could be happy."

Her cheeks reddened considerably. "I have to admit that he really is a great guy, actually. And I want to be happy with him. He told me that if I was a better person, and nicer to everyone, I could be happy… And that's what I want." She finished her explanation with a whisper.

I gawked. Karin actually wanted to be a nice person? Well, everyone can change…

I smiled. "Karin," I said, thinking back to the incident with Gaara. "Everyone deserves a second chance."

She stared at me for a moment, and then her lips curled up in a smile. "Thank you,"

XXX

Breakfast was boring. Without Neji or Sasuke, Hinata and I had to take care of our children by ourselves (and Karin and Kankuro actually took care of Negi for a change.) Since Karin had apologized, there was really no one to argue with, and Honoka didn't say a word to me since she was still worried about Kiba, who was still in the infirmary for the sake of everyone else (his pungent smell hadn't left yet.)

"Tennie-chan," Kirimi whined. "It's so hot! Can we go to the pool today?" she clasped her hands together and batted her eyelashes adorably. "Pretty please?"

I grinned and stooped down to ruffle her hair. "You are such a ham." I teased. "But yeah, it is pretty hot." I turned to Hinata. "If you're up to it, then I have no objections."

Hinata shrugged. "It is hot…" she mused. Kirimi turned to the bluenette and got down on her knees in a begging position.

"Pleeeeeassseeee," she begged. "With a cherry on top?"

"Make it cinnamon and you've got a deal." Hinata retorted playfully. Kirimi jumped to her feet and hollered a hurray.

"Karou, we're going swimming!" she exclaimed. He grinned and took her hand.

"Then we should get changed."

They shared a smile and raced into the bathroom, closing and locking the door behind them. Hinata and I shared a suspicious look, but opted for ignoring it. "Um…Tenten..?" I glanced over my shoulder to see Karin wringing her hands nervously.

"Yeah?"

"Could Kankuro, Negi and I come along too?"

Hinata shot me an astounded and untrusting look, but I shrugged. "It's not our pool. You can come along if you want." Karin smiled softly.

"'Kay, thanks."

I furrowed my brows at Hinata, who was busying herself with making the children's bed until Karin and Kankuro had left the room (probably to invite Mae along.) When the door was closed, Hinata sprung into defense mode with her hands planted firmly on her hips and her face hardened like Neji's usually was.

"What was _that_ all about?" she asked.

"I don't really know." I said. "I think she wanted to go to the pool today."

Hinata deadpanned.

"I'm not a retard, Ten," she said. "And neither are you. Karin wanted to hang out with us, _not_ just spend a day at the pool." She narrowed her gaze. "And I think you know why."

I rolled my eyes. "This isn't cold case, Hina. Stop acting like a private eye."

I don't know how she knew about my old nickname, Ten, but after hearing her use the taboo name, I decided to use the one Sasuke had told me people used to call her. I, for one, had never called her that and had never heard anyone call her that before, but after hearing someone say my nickname after so long, it made me feel kind of warm and fuzzy inside. Like Hinata and I were really bonding now.

"Did Karin say anything to you?" she wanted to know.

Jackpot.

"I don't know," I said. "Maybe she said something…" I pretended to ponder whether she had said anything and could tell Hinata was getting annoyed. I gave up on that one and sighed. "She apologized this morning, actually."

Hinata gaped.

"She _what_?"

I shrugged. "She said something about not wanting to be a bitch and how she and Kankuro were going steady now." I tapped my chin. "And also about how she wanted to be happy, maybe?"

"Did you believe her?"

The way Hinata said those words made it sound like Karin was a practiced murdered, and I had just bought her fallacious alibi.

"Stop over-worrying yourself," I said, shrugging her off with the wave of my hands. "I didn't believe a word of it, but hey; if she wants to buy me ice cream and rub my feet I'm all for it."

Hinata shook her head.

"So you're using her?"

I shrugged.

"Well let me tell you this," she said. "I've known Kari far longer than you, and all she does is stab people in the back. So when she does that to you, don't come crying to me, because you used her knowing of my warning."

"She's not going to stab anyone." I said in a sing song voice. "And I never said I trusted her. I'm just letting her do nice things for me. If she wants to do it, then there's no problem with that, right?"

Hinata crossed her arms over her chest. "And if she wants something back?"

Once again, I shrugged. "It's a free country. She can't make me do anything. So really, she's just hurting herself."

Hinata shot me an I-can't-believe-I'm-you're-friend glare before starting on her and Sasuke's bd.

And here comes the awkward part of the day.

**Okay, well, I hope you all enjoyed that. Comment and remember to check out my other stories (especially if you like KibaHina.) Have a great belated Saint Patty's day! **


	21. Chapter 21

Chapter Twenty One

_Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto does_

**Too bummed I'm not getting any reviews, but I'm going to keep writing anyways. It's called "don't let someone else influence what you do." I guess I'll have to keep writing until I finish it -_-**

We boarded the elevator as soon as everyone was changed and ready. Karin had brought along Mae, but her child was suspiciously nowhere to be seen. I placed my hands on Kirimi's shoulders as everyone packed in. Karin gave me a toothy grin, which I returned with a subtle lift of the corner of my mouth.

"I can't wait to go back to the pool," Karin squealed. "It's so hot today."

"I know; I just hope the pool isn't closed." Mae said.

"Why would it be closed?" I asked as the doors closed. Suddenly, there was the sound of someone shouting, but I couldn't catch what the words were exactly through the closed doors. Everyone exchanged bemused glances.

"Uh, because of the incident," Mae said after a while.

Oh yeah. The incident.

Kirimi looks up at me with her glistening azure eyes and says, "What were they yelling about?" My eyes dart back to the elevator doors and I frown.

"I don't know," I said. "It was probably just someone arguing over something stupid."

Just then, an alarm sounded and the elevator went pitch dark except for a flashing, red light. Kirimi wraps her arms around my waist and buries her head in my left thy. I can feel something wet seep through my jean shorts, and I know she's crying.

"What's going on?" Hinata asks frantically.

"I don't know," I say.

"There's an emergency," Kankuro says.

"No shit," Karin barks.

"Karin!"

"Well?" she huffs.

"Guys, just calm down. They wouldn't let anything happen to us." I say.

"Oh please; if it was an emergency, they wouldn't be able to help it if something bad happened to us." Mae says bitterly.

"Way to keep it positive," I mutter.

Suddenly, the lights are back on and the alarm is off. Everyone glances around anxiously. The elevator doors open then, and everyone turns to see two security guards. "Sorry," one says. Mae shoves through the rest of us and reaches the guards, trying to scurry past them. The one who answered, the bald one, places a firm hand on her shoulder and holds her in place.

"You can't go anywhere, ma'am," he says. Mae jerks away, a scowl forming on her glossy, pale lips.

"What's happening?" I ask.

The other security guard turns to me and answers in a deep voice. "There's a storm watch." Hinata and I share a look and I know exactly what she's thinking. My question earlier. About the weather. If we get storms where we're at. "There's a storm approaching and we've been told to keep everyone in the building until it passes."

"You can go wherever you want inside the building, but do not exit the building." The bald one adds. And before we can respond, he reaches inside the elevator and presses the button for our floor. The doors close and we're left with a heavy silence.

"Tenten," Hinata starts. My eyes flicker to hers. She looks like she's about to cry. Her eyes are red and glossy; her throat seems tight when she speaks and her face is flushed.

"Kirimi," I say softly. I pat her back and she looks up at me with tear filled eyes.

"Aw, Tennie!" Karin exclaims. "You are so cute when you're affectionate!"

Moment ruined.

"Uh, thanks," I say, eyebrow twitching.

The elevator doors open and we're let out. Mae's the first one out, hurrying into the hallway and flailing her arms around. Karin follows her and places two hands on her shoulders, looking her straight in the eye when she tells her to stay calm.

"Tenten, look!" Kirimi says. I follow her to the window that she's peeking out of and my heart sinks. The wind is picking up outside; the trees are swaying fiercely; the sky is a dark grey and the sun is nowhere to be found. It looks exactly like my dream.

Hinata comes up from behind me and I hear her breath catching in her throat. When I turn to face her, she looks just as shocked and scared as I feel. "Tenten," she whispers. "How did you…?"

"I don't know," I say. "I was just… I could feel the thickness in the air."

I decide it's best not to tell her about the dream. She was already angry with me about accepting Karin's apology, and if I told her the truth she'd think I was fibbing. But the way she looks at me seriously makes me reconsider. Her lips are turned down in a frown and her eyes are dark. "Tenten, don't lie to me."

"I'm not lying," I lie. "I seriously felt the thickness in the air! My mother taught me how to do it before she died."

Hinata immediately lets it fly when I mention my mother.

"Look Hinata," I sigh. "How about me invite some people into our room to chill? You know, Ino, Naruto, Kiba, Honoka…?" I smile suggestively and she cracks a small one.

"Okay," she agrees.

"Karin," I call, looking past Hinata's shoulder. Said pinkette looks up from her and Mae's conversation, eyebrows raised in question. "We're inviting a few friends to the room to chill. You guys are welcome to join us if you want to."

Karin grins. "You betcha',"

XXX^.~XXX

I stretch my legs out before me as Ino hands me an orange soda. I thank her and pop the can open, taking a swig with a satisfactory sigh following after. I glance over at Hinata who's sitting on her and Sasuke's bed, reading a text message. "Who's it from?" I ask even though I know who it's from.

"Sasuke," she says, eyes still glued to her phone.

"Well, what's he say?" I sit up from my leaning position against the wall and watch her expectantly. She's hesitating, as if she doesn't want to tell me. And then I get it. Karin and Mae are in the room. She doesn't want to say in front of them.

"Hey Hinata, I need you help with something." I say. She looks up, surprised.

"With what?" she asks cautiously.

"Come with me outside. I need to show you something."

As we exit the room, I catch Ino's peculiar look. I shrug my shoulders in response and shut the door before she can say anything. When we're alone, I cross my arms and wait for her to read the text.

"What did you want to show me?" Hinata asks.

"What?" I say. "I didn't want to show you anything. I only said that so you could tell me about the text. In private."

Hinata's expression in one of discomfort. Wasn't the reason for her silence because of Karin and Mae's presence?

"Hinata," I say. She makes a grunting sound, like the one Neji makes when he doesn't understand something. I roll my eyes. "The text?"

"I left my phone in the room." She says.

"What do you mean!" I shout. She looks at me with big, shocked eyes. "Sorry," I whisper. "But don't give me that bull. I know you're phone is in your pocket. So tell me."

"Okay," Hinata sighs. She retrieves her phone and begins to read it. "Hey Hina baby, how are you doing? I'm fine, in case you're wondering. When we got there, they made us go in right away to testify. We're coming back down tomorrow, so only one more night to sleep without me. Hope you can manage." She scrolls down, and then looks up at me to add a side note. "I asked what the verdict was and he said…" she looks back down. "The verdict is guilty."

There's silence.

Something in my gut clenches when I hear her words. My mind is swimming and I can feel a migraine coming on. "I think I need a drink," I say.

"Woah, Tenten," Hinata says, putting a hand on my forearm. "Hold on just a minute. Don't go doing something stupid without thinking. And where the hell would you get a beer anyway?"

"What?" I say, half listening as the other half is my subconscious gnawing at my mind. "I was talking about me soda."

"Oh,"

"But I guess I could get one of those from Karin, if I wanted to."

I reach for the door handle but Hinata stops me. "Tenten," she says. Her tone is clipped. My eyes meet hers and my hand drops to my side.

"What?" I whine.

"You can't run away from this." She says. Then she helps me to sit on the floor. "How does it make you feel? The verdict, I mean."

I shrug. "I don't know," I don't meet her eyes but I know she's staring at me. It kind of makes me annoyed but I choose to ignore it. Instead I focus on what Kirimi told me that other night. She had wanted Gaara to get what he deserved. But did he get what he deserved?

I shake my head. This is all too confusing. I mean, Gaara really didn't deserve to go to jail for pushing a few people in the pool. The little boy was okay, Neji and I were alright and Sasuke's still standing so…

"Tenten," Hinata says. "Why don't you want the verdict to be guilty? Don't you care that he nearly killed you and Neji? Now to mention that little boy."

"I know," I sigh. "But that's the thing. He almost killed us."

"Yeah…"

"But he _didn't_. Don't you see? He doesn't deserve this."

"Then what does he deserve?" she asks. I think about that. What does he deserve? My mind wanders back to Kirimi and my conversation.

"A second chance," I murmur. "And maybe some free anger management courses." Hinata watches me for a minute, as if she's trying to consider something, and then she pulls her phone back out and starts typing. "What are you doing?" I ask.

"It's break," Hinata says. "Maybe I can convince Sasuke to change the verdict. Gaara can have anger management courses."

"Really?" my eyes light up at the idea, and suddenly I'm laughing at the way I acted earlier. "Damn Hinata," I say. "I'm so sorry. I'm such a buzz kill."

"Whatever," she says and slips her phone back into her pocket. "Come on. Let's go back inside."

XXX^.~XXX

"Okay Shikamaru, truth or dare?" Naruto says as he guzzles down his third can of root beer. The idle teen heaves a sigh and answers truth. Naruto grins. "Is it true that you like Temari?"

Shikamaru rolls his eyes. "Duh," he says while lifting his right hand which is entwined with Temari's. "We're going out." Temari blushes and their hands fall back to his lap.

"I didn't know that," Naruto mumbles. "Redo!"

"No way," I laugh. "It's my turn." Naruto crosses his arms in a pout but I ignore him. I'm going for Karin on this one. After Hinata and my discussion in the hallway, she stopped me as I was about to enter the room. She had her suspicions about Karin from the get-go, but now she told me that she had an idea of what the pinkette was up to. She thought she was trying to steal Neji. And if that was true, then that would also mean her story about her and Kankuro was fake. Whichever it was, I was going to find out.

"Karin," I say. "Truth or dare?"

"Dare," she says with a sly grin.

Dammit. I was hoping she'd go for truth. Did she know about my suspicions? Either way, I guess I could use this to my advantage. If she was lying about Kankuro, then she'd never kiss him, right?

"Okay. I dare you to kiss Kankuro."

The room falls silent and Hinata and I share a knowing look. But then our hopes deflate as she leans over, hands and knees on the carpet, as her and Kankuro's lips connect. I almost have to slap my forehead when Kankuro places a hand to the back of her head and leans into it.

"Ewwwww,"

Everyone's heads turn to the source of the noise to find Karou, Negi, Kirimi, Ellis, Hikaru, and Ken watching in disgust.

"He's eating her face!" Ellis cries. And then she bursts into tears. Everyone turns to Naruto, who stumbles to his feet and tries to coax her into calming down as Ino chortles through her soda.

"You can stop now," Mae says, annoyed. Karin and Kankuro part and their heavy panting fills the room. I catch Hinata lifting a hand to her mouth in an attempt to keep her from puking and I almost laugh. But I don't. Instead I get up and turn to the kids who all look up at me accusingly. All but Kirimi, who looks kind of upset.

"You don't have to look, you know." I say with my hands on my hips.

"Cannonballs aren't something we can ignore." Ken says indignantly.

Kiba, Honoka, Hinata and I all burst into laughter at his mistake of calling Karin and Kankuro cannonballs instead of cannibals.

"Okay, okay," I say out of breath. "There will be no more "cannonballs" for now. Okay? Now go back to playing." Ken doesn't seem satisfied but turns away to go back and play, and soon the others are following him. All but Kirimi. Instead she plops onto her bed rather glumly and takes her chin in her hands.

"Hey," I say. She doesn't look up at me but I know she's listening. I bend down beside her and place a hand on her knee. "What's going on? Why aren't you playing with everyone else?"

"I don't like them," she mumbles through her hand. I glance over my shoulder at the group, who are back to playing truth or dare without me. Hinata's watching me, a question hanging in the air by the look on her face. I shrug my shoulders as to say "I don't know" and turn back to Kirimi.

"Why not?"

"Because," she says. Her lips start to quiver as if she's about to cry, but she holds it in. "They don't like me."

"Yeah they do." I say and take a seat on the floor by her swinging feet. "What makes you think they don't like you?"

"They just don't." she says. And then she asks, "Can I come sit with you?"

I smile. "Yeah," I say. And then I help her off the bed and lead her to our circle. Naruto looks up at me as I arrive and grins.

"Good, you're back." He says. "It's your turn."

"I already went." I say and take a seat on the floor. I pat the ground beside me and Kirimi climbs down beside me, resting her head on my lap and curling up into a loose ball.

"No, I mean it's your turn. Truth or dare?"

I sigh.

"Um…truth,"

It's not like I could participate in any dares with Kirimi on my lap. Besides, what could a little truth telling do? But when I answer truth, Karin and Mae watch me carefully. I don't like the looks they're giving me, but turn from them as Naruto asks the question.

"Okay… Is it true that you and Neji have done it?"

My face turns beet red and I glance down at Kirimi. She's asleep. Or so it seems. Next I look to Hinata, but she isn't listening. Instead, she's reading a text. The text from Sasuke declaring the final verdict. I have to know.

"Um, yeah," I say and try to crane my neck to see over Hinata's shoulder. But she's too far away.

The next thing I hear is Naruto whistling. "Sure did that one right quick, didn't you?" he says with a cocky grin.

"What?" I say. What did I just say to him? Had I answered yes? Oh gawd, no.

"What a whore," Mae says as she rises to her feet. Everyone turns to her. She's looking down on me with a scowl and her arms are crossed over her chest.

"What are you talking about?" I say, suddenly angry. "Neji and I are dating. We can do whatever the hell we want!"

Just the thought of Mae getting angry over what me and Neji do makes me totally aggravated. It's none of her business and she can go to hell if she thinks she has any say in what we do or don't do.

"I knew it since the day you moved in." she says bitterly. "You've always been that way. You take what you want, and if you don't get it, you try and try until you do get it." She rolls her eyes crossly.

"Say that again?" I say. My whole body is shaking with anger. How dare she bring our family into this! "I'd come over there and beat your face in if I wasn't tied down right now."

"Oh please, "Tennie," you can't do shit and you know it. All you can do is steal from others."

"What are you talking about?" I howl. The whole room is quiet, and I am very aware of the children watching me. "Neji is my boyfriend. He and my relationship has nothing to do with you! You have no say in what I-no, _we_ do!" I huff angrily.

"You've never had any say. We aren't really sisters! You and I? You and I are nothing more than two people who used to live in the same house. We aren't even stepsisters. I will never consider you my stepsister and I will _never _consider your mother _my_ mother!"

Kirimi's awake now and she's watching me with huge, terrified eyes.

"I hate you Mae! I hate you and your whole family!"

I rise from my spot on the floor just as Kirimi starts to back away from me. Hinata catches her in her arms and scoops her up as I storm out of the room. I need to take a breather.

How could Mae say those things? I was not a whore! If anyone was a whore, it was most definitely her. And besides, Neji is my boyfriend-not hers! I don't care if she has feeling for him, and I do not care if her tiny, black heart is broken by me and Neji's relationship. She can get sucked up in the black-hole-of-a-heart of hers, for all I care.

The door open, and I turn around to find Honoka. My heart drops into my stomach. The look on her face is like a slap to the face. What had I said again?

Oh yeah.

"Honoka," I start.

"Tenten, I know you didn't mean what you said."

"Oh, I mean it. I definitely mean it." I say through gritted teeth. She winces just the tiniest bit. I let out a huge breath. "I mean, I meant part of it. You know I love you. You're the only one from that family that I _do_ love."

She beats me to it. She wraps her arms around my neck before I can.

"Tenten," she says. "I know exactly what you meant." She pulls away to look at me. "And I forgive you." I smile.

"And I also know that Mae can be a handful."

"An ass-full," I correct. She cracks a tiny smile.

"But," she says exasperatedly. "What you said in there… It was pretty rough. You have to accept her feelings and have a little consideration for her."

"I know," I sigh. And just as I'm about to explain exactly how I felt when Mae said those things, something hits me.

I know what Karin's plan was.

And t makes me _furious_.

And apparently, Honoka can see the fury on my face when she calls my name cautiously and worriedly. But I'm not listening. Instead I'm barging through the door and back into the room, calling Karin's name instead of Mae's.

And then the building shakes.

**Hey guys :/ Sorry this took so long to write and upload… but since I plan on finishing this story before I leave for Spring Break, I had to think of something to make this story end quickly so… Here you go! I just hope you all enjoyed. Please comment, and don't worry, no one dies. Maybe Mae though… XD **


	22. Chapter 22

Chapter Twenty Two:

The Finale

_Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto does_

**Hey guys :/ I caught a cold and we leave for vacation tomorrow -_- I swear, God just doesn't want me to be happy. Oh well, at least I'll be able to finish this for you guys. Heads up, this chapter will be loooonnngger than usual.**

The scariest thing that's ever happened to me was when I was little and there was a tornado. My father wasn't home, and neither was my mother. I was all alone. I had grabbed my dog, Biscuit, and headed for the basement where we sat curled up in a corner with a radio in my hands. We waited it out until after three hours of shaking and crying, the person on the radio declared it safe to come out. Of course, my father had been worried sick, and when he got home he gathered me in his arms and kissed my cheeks so many times I thought I'd be covered in saliva. But my mother hadn't even known there was a tornado. She shrugged it off, giving me no mind.

This was even scarier, though.

First of all, I was in a state where shock and rage had taken over all of my heart. At the moment. Secondly, I had Kirimi to protect. And the scariest thing in the world is the thought of not being able to protect someone you love.

I dashed into the room and scooped Kirimi into my arms. I assumed Hinata had set her down when I'd left, and now she held Karou to her chest as if he was her lifeline. I glanced over my shoulder at Honoka who was still in the hallway. "Honoka," I screamed. She blinked and suddenly, it was as if her mind had cleared because she scurried into the room and grabbed Ken. Kiba came up from behind her and encircled two protective arms around the both of them.

"Tenten," Hinata shouts.

"I think it's an earthquake!" I reply. Hinata looks so scared it makes me want to cry, but I can't. Instead I hold Kirimi tighter in my arms and make a beeline for the door. Standing under the doorway is the safest spot, so I've been told. But as soon as I'm under, one of the guards from earlier appears and shoos us out of the room.

"Where are we going?" Ino inquires. Naruto's holding Ellis with one strong arm and clutching Ino's hand as tightly as possible.

"To the pool," he says. "It's not safe in here."

"How is the pool safer than in here?" Hinata exclaims as if the guard is as stupid as can be. And he sort of is. I mean, what if one of us fell into the pool and drowned? After all that's happened, I wouldn't be surprised.

"It's the only safe place here," the guard says. "Please, the building could collapse any minute."

"Plus we're on the top floor." Kankuro adds. "I agree with the guard. We should get out of here." Karin is holding Negi in her arms and hushing him as he wiggles and blubbers.

"But the pool…" I say. But no one hears. Everyone is hustling out of the door and to the stairs. I grit my teeth and reluctantly follow.

Suddenly, Hinata's phone stars going off and she reaches into her pocket to retrieve it. "Hello?" she says. And then tears burst from her milky orbs and she's sputtering Sasuke's name. "No, we're going out by the pool." A pause. "I know it isn't safe, but the building may collapse."

I look over my shoulder for a brief moment to see if anyone has been left behind and gasp when I see Mae climbing into the elevator. "Hey," I shout. "Hey, Mae, don't go in there!" but the doors have closed and the body guard is pushing me down the stairs. "No," I say. "She's in the elevator! Let go of me!"

Kirimi's arms around my neck are choking me, and tears are threatening to escape. Everything would be so much easier if Neji was here. Hinata's crying even worse than the kids and promising Sasuke she'll be okay and protect Karou. And then she pauses. "Tenten," she says and hands me the phone. I take it with furrowed brows. She wipes her nose and urges me with the nod of her head to listen.

I take the phone to my ear and hear Neji's frantic voice. And then the tears come and they're dampening Kirimi's hair, and my shirt and Hinata's phone. "Neji?" I say. Just saying his name, having the pleasure to have the word on my tongue makes my heart flutter. "Neji," I say again.

"Tenten, my gawd, are you alright? Hinata said you're managing. What's happening?"

I laugh, but it's a weak, sardonic one. "I'm fine. I let out my wrath on Mae and caused an earthquake. Aren't I wonderful?"

"Are you laming yourself for this?" he says.

I have to think about that one. Was I? I mean, I did have that dream. And then after I got mad the earthquake happened. Maybe I did blame myself?

"Tenten," he says and I can tell he's holding on by just a little. So I listen. For him. "I'm coming. I swear to you I'll protect both you and Kirimi. I'm coming for you-"

But I don't get to hear the rest because the line is cut off by the earthquake. "Neji," I scream into the phone. But it's no use. He's gone. The guard is screaming something at me, but whatever he's saying falls on deaf ears. I can't hear him. Won't hear him.

Hinata snatches the phone from me and shoots me a look that says hang-in-there; and I presume that the guard was telling me to hang up the phone. Now we're out the doors and the smell of rain is all I can focus on. I look up and see the dark clouds, but there's no rain falling. I look down. The ground isn't wet.

"Tenten," Kirimi whispers into my ear. "Where are we going?"

"The pool," I say. My movements are clumsy, and I feel numb.

Had Neji said he was coming for me? Did he mean he was actually coming to get me? Would I get to see him?

My thoughts are interrupted when there's a clap of thunder, and then the ground trembles tremendously. Kirimi's screaming in my ear; everyone's shouting; my knees are weak; my arms hurt form carrying her; my breaths come out shallow; Neji's words are ringing in my head.

And then lightning.

And the building crumbles.

My first thought is "Is everyone out?"

And then my second thought is "Did Mae get out?"

"Mae," I say slowly. I let the name sit on the tip of my tongue before saying it again. And then I shout it, louder and louder until I'm screaming at the top of my lungs. "Mae!"

Honoka comes up beside me and grabs my hand. "Tenten," she shouts. "Follow me."

"Mae's in there!" I scream. Something flashes across Honoka's face but it's undecipherable. "She's in the elevator." My voice drops to a whisper as we look behind our shoulders at the crumbling building. "She's in there." I repeat it over and over like a crazed person until Kiba shoos us both to the pool with everyone else.

Honoka's joining me. "She's in there!" we scream in unison.

Kiba's trying his best to calm us down but it's no use. Neither of us will stop. Not until we see her. I survey the area, searching the sea of frightened faces for Mae. I find Choji with his child, and rush over to him.

"Mae," I say. A sullen looks crosses his face and he shakes his head.

And I know she's gone.

Karin's by my side in an instant and she's waiting for an answer. Her eyes are red and swollen, like she'd been crying, and then I realize she had been. For Mae. Because Mae was actually her friend. "She's in there."

There's a scream in the distance and everyone turns their heads in the direction. The ground has opened up and someone is falling into the large break. And then I realize it's Hinata.

I say her name as if it'll stop this from happening. Stop the earth from swallowing her up. Maybe, I think, if I say her name enough times the ground will stop shaking and she'll be okay. But I'm delusional right now, and I know it.

I thrust Kirimi into the arms of the first person I see: Shikamaru; and make a run for it. Hinata's arms are grasping the air above her, and off to the side I see Karou crying and screaming. I push him back and he stumbles into Ino, who catches him by the shoulders and hoists him into her arms.

"Hinata," I shout. Her eyes flicker to mine, and terror flashes in them.

"Stay back," she says. And then her scream cuts through the air. Everyone stops their babbling and silence is the only sound, except for the rumbles of the earthquake and claps of thunder. "My leg," she breathes.

"Hinata," I fall to my knees and catch her hand. "I'll hoist you up."

"No!" the way she shouts makes it sound as if my saving her would be the death of her. "My leg…it's caught."

I'm just about to shout something back when a stream of blood escapes her lips.

And then another scream fills the air.

I look over my shoulder at Temari, who's pointing in the direction of the pool. My eyes flicker from her to the direction she's pointing in and my breath catches in my throat. There's a crack in the side of the pool.

"Hinata," I say slowly, as if she were a small child who had her mother's pair of diamond earrings and I was trying to get them back. Her eyes follow mine back to the pool and both of our hearts stop.

"Shit,"

And the damn breaks.

Water bursts forth and everyone is scrambling to get out of the way. I turn just in time to see Shikamaru climbing up an umbrella with Kirimi clinging to his back.

She's safe.

"Go, Tenten," Hinata says. I turn back to her to find her wincing in pain. "Go," she repeats.

"Are you coo coo bananas?" I say. "If I let you die, Sasuke would have my hide." I crack a smile, but she doesn't return it. This is life and death we're dealing with, and she obviously doesn't think lightening the mood will help to save either of our lives.

I press my lips together and cling to Hinata's hand as tightly as possible. With my other hand I cling to the ground and bend over as to keep myself planted.

And then I feel water at my feet and I say just in time, "Hold your breath!"

Water tumbles over the both of us, and I'm clinging to the ground so tightly that some of it starts to crumble in my hands. And the water's dampening of the ground doesn't help, either. Hinata's fingers curl around my hand weakly, but I make sure not to let go. I tighten my grip on both her hand and the ground and try not to focus on my lightheadedness.

I feel the bitter breath of air at the crown of my head and know that the water is descending. My eyes flutter open, and I peer through the murky water at Hinata. Her eyes are closed tightly and her face is beet red.

She's about to run out of air. And the injury to her leg isn't helping in the least. But then my ears are free and I can hear the shouting that was before muffled by the water. Then my nose is free and I take in a long, dizzying breath.

I blink a few times to get the water out of my eyes and look down at Hinata. She's not going to make it if she doesn't get some air into her lungs. The water makes it hard for me to grasp her hand, but I don't let go. Instead I tug on her hand and watch as her eyes flutter open. She looks up at me, squinting.

I smile and tug again. The water is loosening the earth's grip on her legs, and as I pull I see the top of her head hit the surface. I give a determined grunt and pull again. This time, her whole head surfaces and she takes in a huge breath before plunging back in.

I make it a routine. Up and down; up and down; up and down. She catches her breath and plunges back down. Breathe, down; breathe, down.

Then the water descends to her neck and her head is free for good. She takes in a couple of huge breaths before saying, "My leg. It's free."

And that's all it takes for me to know she wants me to pull her out of this. But just as I'm about to, someone grabs Hinata's arm right under my grasp on her hand. Hinata and I both look up to see Sasuke. His eyes are glossy and red and he looks angry. I release her hand and fall backwards onto my ass.

And then I watch.

I watch as Sasuke gives one mighty pull and Hinata's body appears. Her leg is bloody and bruised, and it looks as if it's broken, too.

Then I feel someone wrap their arms around my waist and hoist me into the air. Before I can turn around to see who it is (yeah, like I need to,) their lips are covering every inch of my face.

"Tenten,"

I smile beneath his kisses and whisper his name.

"Neji,"

He stops and looks me in the eyes. "You're safe," he says. And then he flicks my forehead. "You idiot," his voice is sharp and it makes me wince, but he mends the hurt with a hug. "I admire you for saving her. But you could have died."

"I would rather die helping a friend than watch my friend die without anyone's help." I say. But I'm not arguing with him. He can think what he wants, because I know I did the right thing. Hinata's leg might be hurt, but at least she's alive.

"Kirimi," he says urgently. I lean away from him.

"Shikamaru,"

He looks behind his shoulder and cracks a smile at the pineapple head, who's clinging to top of the umbrella with a bored expression. I roll my eyes.

"You picked the right person." Neji says. "He's smart enough."

"Yeah, enough." I say with a small scoff.

Suddenly, the wind picks up and Neji and I look up to see the dark clouds emptying their contents. Rain patters against our faces and my mind immediately flashes back to my dream. The wind.

"Kirimi," I shout. Shikamaru looks down on me, along with Kirimi. When she sees Neji, her whole face lights up. I guess we know who her favorite is.

But that's not necessarily a good thing, considering the sight of him makes her leap from Shikamaru's back. We all reach out to catch her, but none of us are close enough. She tumbles to the rolling water beneath her and she's gone in less than a second.

"She's going to drown," I shout.

Just like my dream, she's going to be lost forever. Nothing I can do will save her. I was too slow. My mind is too nebulous and my body too weak.

But Neji's fine. And he takes then liberty to jump in after her.

Sasuke and Hinata are cuddled up in a heap by the very fissure that had nearly swallowed her up a minute ago. Sasuke's wrapping his shirt around Hinata's injured leg and showering her with kisses. Neji is dunking his head underwater to look for Kirimi since there's no way to see her above of water.

I glance around. Karin is still mourning over Mae, and Kankuro is doing his best to comfort both her and Negi. Choji looks sad, but determined to keep his child safe. Kiba has Honoka in an embrace as her tears cascade down her cheeks and mix with the rain. She's hugging Ken to her chest and pressing her right cheek into his tangled and matted hair.

Neji's head breaks the surface and my heart swells with hope with I see a tangle of blonde clutched to his chest. Then her eyes open and pools of cerulean greet me. A smile graces my lips, and I can't help it. I fall to my knees.

And then everything goes black.

XXX^.~XXX

"It was a significant sight. Watching these kids protect themselves and kids that were only just starting life. I am proud to say that no one died in the accident; but few were hurt. Two severely and three minor. I hope to see all of your faces again, and I know that all of you children will hope to see their faces again too." Kakashi finished his speech with a small, thankful smile and took his seat.

"Thank you, Kakashi," Ayame, the owner of the orphanage, said into the microphone. "And now the kids will have a chance to say goodbye to their teen parents."

I kneeled down beside Kirimi and wrapped my arms around her in an affectionate hug. "I'll miss you so much," I say while kissing her cheek. She agrees and I squeeze her tighter.

"I love you, Tenten," Kirimi sniffs. I close my eyes to stop the tears from coming but it doesn't work. She's got me.

"I love you more,"

And then I release her and let Neji have his turn. He bends down and cradles her in his arms. "I'll miss you, pumpkin. Be good for me, neh?" she giggles.

"Yes, Neji-wedgies,"

Neji kisses the top of her head and stands back as Ayame takes her hand and leads her across the room. "That was…fun." I say.

"It was fun sharing a home with you." Neji says. "And seeing what it would be like to have you as a wife."

My cheeks heat up, but I don't try to hide it. Instead I turn and kiss him on the lips.

"Thank you for being there, Neji," I say against his skin.

"I would never leave you for dead." He answers. And then he places his hands on my hips and pulls me into his chest.

"I love you, Neji-wedgies," I say with a giggle.

"Love you too, Panda-chan."

"Damn you,"

XXX^.~XXX

"I cannot wait or summer break!" Sakura exclaimed.

"Yeah, but wasn't our "vacation" kind of like a summer break? I mean, we barely learned anything. I don't think I'm ready to leave school yet." Hinata said.

I leaned back in my chair, arms crossed over my chest. "As long as I passed…"

Suddenly, Kakashi and Itachi walked through the doors carrying two manila folders. I swallowed. Underneath the flaps of those two folders lay my answer. Lay my future.

Do I pass?

Do I fail?

"Hello class," Kakashi beamed. "It's nice to see everyone is back to their regular selves." Everyone turned to Mae, who was sitting pretty in her new purple wheelchair. After everything that happened between the two of us, I'd decided to let her feelings for Neji and her hatred for me go. I couldn't help that she liked my boyfriend, and I definitely couldn't help that she wanted me out of the picture; but she was my step sister, and I'd have to get along with her. Especially since we'd once again be living under the same roof once summer started.

"I hope you all enjoyed your little vacation, and will enjoy your summer as well." His eyes raked over the room as he opened his folder. Itachi followed suit, and then held up a slip of paper.

"Here is the list of scores." He said.

"Itachi will read out the two partners' names with their scores and I will explain why you got that number. Everyone ready?" Kakashi explained. Silence answered him. I could feel the tension in the air as everyone held their breaths.

"Okay," Itachi cleared his throat. "Hinata and Sasuke: 8,"

I glanced over at the bluenette who looked utterly confused. Her hand sprung up and before Itachi or Kakashi could call on her, she asked her question. "Is that out of ten or one hundred?"

"Ten,"

"Thank gawd," Sasuke muttered.

"Hinata, Sasuke," Kakashi said, his eyes scanning over the document in his hands. "You did an excellent job with Karou, but you could have done better. And at the end when, Hinata, you fell into that hole…" Kakashi looked embarrassed as he struggled to get out his explanation. "Well, you could have put Karou in a lot of trouble, if it weren't for Tenten stepping in and pushing him out of the way." His eyes flickered to me in thanks and I nodded. "In short, you two pass."

"Karin and Kankuro: 4," Itachi said quickly.

Neji and I shared a quick look before turning to Karin, who was now rising to her feet in protest. "Save it, candy lips," Itachi said. Karin shut her mouth, a blush dusting her cheeks ever so slightly.

"Hey, I'm a good parent!" Kankuro shouted. Everyone turned to him in surprise. Including Karin.

"Hold up," she said, sticking out a finger. "Are you saying I'm a _bad_ parent?"

"Drinking booze and leaving your child to the hands of someone else isn't exactly good parenting, Karin." He said.

"Wha- you're one to talk! Who was the one partying it up right beside me?"

"I was dragged along. I had no say in any of it."

"No say? What the hell, Kankuro? You had all the say you wanted!"

"Ahem," Kakashi interrupted. "I think you two just explained why you got such a low score. Either way, you two failed."

Kankuro shot Karin a dirty glare. "We're over," he said.

"You think?"

The room grew silent as the two took their seats. Neji squeezed my hand, and I realized I must have looked scared. "What if we fail?" I whispered.

"I don't think that's possible," he said back. "Besides, brownie points for saving two lives, right?" we shared a smile.

"Ino and Naruto: 7,

….

"Choji and Mae: 3,"

….

"Honoka and Kiba: 6,"

I glanced over at my younger step sister. She was chewing on her lip nervously. Was six a passing grade?

"Kiba, for getting hurt numerous times, we were forced to deduct points." Kiba shot me an accusing glare. "But six is still a passing grade. Just by a bit."

"Neji and Tenten," Itachi said, not waiting for Kiba and Honoka's reactions. Our eyes locked and I suddenly wondered about all of the things I'd done wrong on the "vacation." How had they known I'd done something wrong in the first place? Were there cameras in the rooms? My cheeks heated at that thought.

Then Itachi smiled and I knew we had passed. "Eight," he said. Neji gave me a small squeeze to my left hand.

"Tenten, Neji, you two showed the upmost care with your child. You protected her when necessary and took care of others' children." It might have been my imagination, but I could have sworn I saw his eyes flicker to Karin. I smiled. "Congratulations, you two pass."

"That concludes the scores," Itachi said in his usual monotone. "Have a great summer."

Everyone jumped to their feet while hollering with joy.

"Party at my place!" Ino shouted.

The crowd of students roared in appreciation and then they were gone before I could even blink. And so were Ino and Naruto.

"Sleepover at my place?" Hinata suggested.

"Definitely," I said. "As long as it's boys and girls."

Neji wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me into his chest. "Yeah," he agreed. "I don't think I'll be able to get used to sleeping in a bed without Tenten."

I smiled nostalgically. "Yeah…" I said.

"Okay, a mixed sleepover," Hinata finalized.

Suddenly, there was a scream and we all turned our heads. Mae had fallen out of her wheelchair trying to get out of the room. I bit my bottom lip, trying to stifle my laughter.

"Hey Mae," I called. She looked up. Her hair was matted to her cheeks and her face sunken. "Want some help?"

Something flickered in her eyes. It might have been surprise and it might have been happiness. But I didn't get a chance to find out. Instead she pursed her lips and climbed back into her wheelchair herself.

"You know what?" she said bitterly, looking straight at Neji. "You're not even that hot. I bet you have a ton of dandruff." And with that she rolled out of the classroom. All was silent.

"Damn,"

**Okay, well, hate to see this story end… No, not really. I am so glad I got this finished before the trip! And now I can start on my other six stories… -_- COMMENT BECAUSE THIS WA S THE FINALE, AFTERALL. :DD**


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